Cinema Prescription

Synopsis: Following the death of her mother and a series of self-inflicted setbacks, young Ingrid Thorburn escapes a humdrum existence by moving out West to befriend her Instagram obsession, a Los Angeles socialite named Taylor Sloane. After a quick bond is forged between these unlikeliest of buddies, the facade begins to crack in both women’s lives — with comically malicious results.
Cast: Aubrey Plaza, Elizabeth Olsen, Billy Magnussen, Wyatt Russell, Pom Klementieff, O’Shea Jackson Jr.
Screenplay: David Branson Smith, Matt Spicer
Directed by: Matt Spicer

I consider INGRID GOES WEST as GET OUT and SINGLE WHITE FEMALE’s little sister. Presented itself as a comedy, but actually it’s borderline horror movie if you ask me. This Matt Spicer-directed film depicts a satirical look on the effect of social medias. How most of the times they are used as artificial façades and how dangerously addictive it could be.

Watching the titular role (Aubrey Plaza) taking extreme stalker-ish measures to befriend an Instagram influencer, Taylor (Elizabeth Olsen), was both darkly funny and disturbing at the same time. Both of these image-obsessed, Insta-produced characters are unlikeable at times, but strangely highly believable. There were some moments that brutally awkward to witness, yet actually relatable. Both Plaza and Olsen really nailed their performances.

Bringing character with mental illness to the screen is tricky. It could fall into stereotypical and end up romanticizing their conditions. There are a few things this film got right, but not without a few wrongs (especially the problematic ending–but still a bold statement nonetheless). Still does not take away INGRID GOES WEST from being a poignant satire of today’s persona-driven culture. [B+]

A copy of my review on Instagram