Review:
"Ingrid Goes West"
Release Date: Aug. 18, 2017
Rating: R Running Time: 97 minutes Take a selfie, Single White Female. Director Matt Spicer’s wicked comedy Ingrid Goes West follows the relocation of a mentally disturbed Pennsylvanian to California in a bid to become close buds with an Instagram sensation. To say Aubrey Plaza’s social misfit Ingrid is fixated with Elizabeth Olsen’s hip and trendy Taylor Sloane is an understatement. She quickly goes her liking every insipid photo Taylor posts to pulling a Jennifer Jason Leigh by emulating Taylor’s style and appearance. When Ingrid finally runs into Taylor—at a very expensive boutique, of course—she goes from harmless Instagram follower to dangerously infatuated hanger-on. Director Matt Spicer and co-screenwriter David Branson Smith feeds upon our preoccupation with social media to fuel a hilariously relevant but ultimately sad cautionary tale about getting too invested in virtual relationships. Ingrid Goes West acknowledges from the get-go that its awkward and unfiltered antagonist has stalker-like tendencies who needs more help than she receives after being released from a mental health facility. The keenly focused Plaza does obsession exceptionally well, so her predictable evolution from dotting “friend” to violent kidnapper is persuasive and amusing in so many frightening ways. While Ingrid makes it all about Taylor, Plaza never makes us forget that it is really all about Ingrid and her need for love and validation, which she is looking for in all the wrong places. Olsen imbues Taylor with a fake California flakiness that seems endearing in an Instagram post but quickly loses its charm in person. Of course, just because Taylor isn’t as perfect as Ingrid believes she is doesn’t make her a bad person, and Spicer ensures that she isn’t complicit in her own victimization. Ingrid Goes West’s secret weapon, though, is Straight Outta Compton’s O'Shea Jackson Jr. He’s as sweet as can be as Dan, Ingrid’s landlord and love interest. He communicates a genuine unconditional affection for Ingrid that she happily exploits to get closer to Taylor. Jackson makes Dan so affable that he sells us completely on the aspiring screenwriter’s eternal love for all things Batman, which provides Ingrid Goes West with its best running joke. Hoodwinking Dan’s into her nefarious plans, Ingrid crosses the line in the final act in order to preserve her floundering relationship with Taylor. This is the only time Ingrid Goes West gets too cartoonish for its own. Otherwise, Ingrid Goes West keeps itself fairly grounded and relatable in its bid to probe the significant impact—both good and bad—that social media can have on our daily lives and, in turn, our self-esteem. Robert Sims Aired: Aug. 17, 2017 Web site: http://www.ingridgoeswestfilm.com |
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