Murtada Elfadl reporting from Sundance
Maybe it was the 10th time director Janicza Bravo used a freeze frame to reframe the wild weekend tale she’s telling in Zola, when I knew I loved her movie. The freeze frames until then were used to stop the narrative for a pithy or funny observation by our narrator Zola (Taylour Paige), twitter reply style. But this time we were getting a whole new perspective from another character. It was delectable, hilarious and ghastly. I’d say the same for Zola.
You all remember the infamous 2015 Twitter thread that started with the classic opening lines:
Y’all wanna hear a story about why me & this bitch here fell out? It’s kind of long but full of suspense?”
Well they went and made a movie out of it...
Bravo and her co-writer, playwright Jeremy O. Harris (Slave Play, Daddy), spin that real life twitter thread of two women, Zola and her new BFF Stephanie (Riley Keough) and the craziest two nights that anyone could imagine into a mad movie tale - it has to be seen to be believed. The movie starts simply enough with an invitation to travel to Tampa to play some strip clubs and make money. But then Stephanie brings her boyfriend (Succession’s Nicholas Braun) and someone she calls her roommate, but is actually her sorta/maybe pimp (Colman Domingo). Things gets complicated and dicey very soon.
Zola is the first film to get how social media interactions have shaped the way people talk to each other IRL. How many times have you said "LOL" to someone’s face? Admit it, many times. Bravo and Harris manage the find the right speech cadences for that sort of phone jargon. Then, Bravo masterfully realizes them visually so that they are seamless. You don't even notice or get bothered by the constant familiar buzzing sounds coming out of every character’s phone from the screen. I'm betting her style of visualizing twitter replies and tumblr memes onscreen will be copied by many.
Bravo also found the perfect actress to play Zola. Taylour Paige’s face is like all the best gifs everyone uses on social media. There's a perfect reaction shot to every outlandish situation Zola finds herself in. Paige's face registers so much, as Zola takes in the lies, the deceit and the strange and sometimes disgusting shenanigans happening around her.
Keough is also a marvel as Stephanie. She speaks in an affected “baby’ voice inflected with colloquialisms appropriated from the Black women Stephanie clearly loves to emulate. It's the kind of performance I love. Big, playing to the fences, from an actress not afraid to take a big swing even if at any moment or with a different editor the performance could become too much, one note, or even offensive. For his part, Colman Domingo is frighteningly menacing and goofishly funny, not an easy mix to pull off. Where is his starring role or streaming series built around his bountiful charisma?
leading ladies; Taylour Paige (Zola) with the real Zola (in leopart print) and Riley Keough.
from left to right: director Bravo, the actresses and Zola, "Cousin Greg", the always welcome Colman Domingo!, playwright Jeremy O. Harris and editor Joi McMillon
Bravo’s deft touch is also apparent in how she frames the many sexual situations, ranging from disgusting to hilarious to actually frightening, but never titillating. Zola announces her as a director with a unique sense for story, and kinetic style to spare.