Bodies Bodies Bodies: A Breezy Surface-Level Satire
When a group of rich 20-somethings plan a hurricane party at a remote family mansion, a party game turns deadly in this fresh and funny look at backstabbing, fake friends, and one party gone very, very wrong.
A night of drinking, drugs, and dancing goes awry and churns into a hurricane of drama and dead bodies in Halina Reijn’s raucous chamber piece, Bodies Bodies Bodies. This snarky whodunit for the Twitter age pits privileged twenty-somethings against one another after their fun and games descend into paranoia and distrust. It’s a hellish nightmare for the characters (who are all wonderfully embodied), but it’s heaps of enjoyment for the viewer, who gets to take pleasure in watching them screech, squirm, and squabble. Much of the fun derives from watching this group of “friends” transform into two-faced savages as the past bleeds into the murderous present and “woke” trigger words are hurled like stones.
Although its POV isn’t firmly fixed, the film takes the shape of a fish-out-of-water story. We’re ostensibly rooted in the outsider eyes of Bee, a young working-class woman from Eastern Europe (played by Borat II’s Maria Bakalova), as she heads off with her wealthy girlfriend Sophie (played by The Hate U Give’s Amandla Stenberg) to a "hurricane party" at a mansion owned by the family of Sophie's childhood friend David (played by a shockingly tattooless Pete Davidson). Upon arrival, we’re introduced to the rest of the party guests, most of whom are childhood friends of Sophie, and it’s soon learned that Sophie is an unannounced, yet welcome guest, with quite a bit of history and unresolved issues with her old pals. Although the couple’s reception is awkward and lukewarm, emotions are smoothed and the group prepare to hunker down for a night of tropical storm antics, which includes a late night game of “Bodies Bodies Bodies.” What starts out as horseplay quickly spirals out into madcap murder and mayhem.
Bodies Bodies Bodies is a very of-the-moment spin on the classic tropes of the murder mystery genre, but for all its modern nuance, well-versed cinephiles will find that Kristen Roupenian’s clever screenplay is Frankensteined from familiar elements. It’s a little bit April Fool’s Day, a little bit Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, and a little bit Clue, and it kind of plays like a vapid, bratty, filmic version of Among Us. As smart and enjoyable as it is, it’s almost entirely surface level and doesn’t have much to say about its subject — but that’s okay; it’s still a fun enough 90 minutes. Although it falters, stumbles, and crashes in its third act, it doesn’t exactly drop the bag; the writing, filmmaking, and performances are all strong enough to hold it together.
Reijn manages to build a decent amount of tension from the character’s past and how they distance one another as a result, but she also fails to properly orient us to the location, which ultimately leads to diminishing returns. Roupenian does a pretty good job showing character through small moments and exchanges instead of fully broadcasting them, which is appreciated, while each performer does a solid job bringing their characters to life and giving them their own distinct personality. Even though each character feels like an individual, you never feel like you really know any of them at all, which is mostly a detriment, albeit one the film is able to slightly bend to its advantage for a short spell. This helps to keep us guessing, since we’re never sure who to believe, but it also creates distance because we’re never latched to any of the characters strong enough to feel fully connected to the events that unfold.
The direction is mostly strong though, and the neon-tinged cinematography sure looks great. Director of photography Jasper Wolf makes expert use of darkness once the lights go out, using glow sticks and characters’ iPhone flashlights to predominantly light scenes and build atmosphere, which is highly effective. Without question, the film’s strongest asset is its tremendous cast (which also includes Lee Pace and Shiva Baby’s Rachel Sennott). Each of them dials in an excellent performance and gets their time to shine, but it’s Sennott who really steals the show as the vacuous podcaster with her frantic chatter and hilarious delivery.
Equal parts vapity and venom, Bodies Bodies Bodies is an entertaining and fun comedy of errors, a clever surface-level satire about miscommunication, and a murder mystery about how with the lights (and wifi) out, it’s more dangerous. Skulls will be cracked, blood will be shed, and shots will be fired, and you’ll have a pretty good time in the chaotic storm, but you won’t be left with too much to chew on after it’s all said and done. Even if you can see the ending before it arrives, its punchline of an ending is apt to give you a chuckle. The real reason to engage in this game of “Bodies Bodies Bodies” is for the cast, their performances, and the LOLs.
Recommendation: If the wifi crashes or you’re looking to laugh at the vapidness of some privileged zoomers, head out to the cinema and give Bodies Bodies Bodies a watch. It’s a pretty good time!
Craving more connection?! Check out the links below:
Shiva Baby review
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm review
The King Of Staten Island review
What do you think? We want to know. Share your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below, and as always, remember to viddy well!