Zola is an A24 film from this year that is based on an internet-breaking twitter thread from 2015. The twitter thread and plot of the film recounts the story of a waitress and part-time stripper Aziah “Zola” King, played by Taylour Paige. She is invited by a stripper named Stefani, played by Riley Keough, whom she just met, to go on a road trip to Tampa. Along for the ride with them is Stefani’s miserable boyfriend Derek, who is desperately trying to legitimize their relationship, and Stefani’s suspicious roommate who Zola only knows as X. As the film progresses more of the truth of the situation with X is revealed and Zola’s suspicions are legitimized.
I had never read the twitter thread that this was based on and I had no idea where the plot was going to lead, which seemed to be the best way to watch this. When the film’s first act ends is when it really starts to pick up and it gets progressively more chaotic and unpredictable as the film goes on. This unpredictability of the sequence of events and character’s choices kept each reveal and plot-point fresh and entertaining. I kept thinking that I understood where the movie was going and then something else would be revealed and eventually I stopped trying to predict what was going to happen.
Zola seems to be the only normal person in the colorful cast of characters. She’s just trying to make some good money in Tampa and be back by the next day, but everyone else seems to have other plans. The film is chaotic to the extreme. Every plot-point is unexpected and adds another layer of tension or fear, and even in some cases comedy. This balance between comedy and legitimate tension is quite impressive.
Zola deals with some really dark themes and has some very scary moments, usually due to the character of X played by Colman Domingo. Throughout these very tense and serious moments, sometimes which are legitimately horrible, the film is able to keep a comedic tone. The comedy is usually derived from Derek, played by Nicholas Braun, and his necessity to prove his love for Stefani. Every scene with him he has a comedic moment and they are all quite funny. They provide a necessary levity to the otherwise disturbing and depressing, if not realistic, subject matter. While the film is very grounded in reality, it is also grounded in the time period and idea of internet virality.
It’s almost as if the film is frozen in time. There was one instance where the four character’s have just arrived at their hotel in Tampa and the boys playing basketball on the balcony have been looped. passing the ball back and forth repeatedly. This idea of looping is also demonstrated by Derek’s obsession with Vine as he would watch the same video over and over and over. Vine was used to place the film in the time period perfectly and I found it to be quite funny. The film also has a few sequences where time seems to have stopped and we are seeing into Zola’s mind. These sequences feature her and Stefani putting make-up on in her mind, and are usually where the actual tweets are spoken. It really does feel as if Zola is a time capsule for this stage of the internet. The source material being derived from Twitter justifies the constant references and audio queues to social media, encapsulating this time period of the internet.
While all the actors are great, the standout to me was Colman Domingo. He literally possesses every scene he is in through the intimidation of his character. If you’re interested in internet culture and history than this is definitely a film you should check out. This is a film I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since I saw it and definitely one I will have to show friends.
Thank you for reading the Review Mirror, I’ll give Zola an 8 out of 10, it’s one that I will look back on repeatedly and definitely think about for a while.
The Review Mirror 