Demi Moore and Keke Palmen star in ‘I Love Booters’, a dark and surreal comedy that is the second from director Boots Riley and was presented at the South By Southwest (SXSW) festival, held March 12-18 in the Texas city of Austin (USA).
The story, which mixes elements of satire, science fiction and social denunciation, seeks to appeal to the public to find “ways to fight against fascism,” according to Riley, speaking after the premiere in Austin.
The film follows the story of a group of ‘boosters’ (literally amplifiers), as people who rob stores – clothing, shoes, supermarkets or pharmacies – and sell the products on the street for less than the original price.
As the plot progresses, through expressionistic scenes, where the costumes, makeup and the images themselves move with the emotion of the protagonists, the Corvette gang (the character played by Palmer) develops a plan to take revenge on the owner of a high-end clothing brand, Christie Smith, played by Moore.
“It is very important that this film has been released in this context (…) we have to find ways to change the structures of the world around us,” said the eclectic director and singer of the hip-hop group The Coup.
Faithful to Riley’s activism and critical vision, the film has an important component of unionist vindication, initially personified in the character played by Poppy Liu (‘Hacks’), a worker in the Chinese factory that manufactures Smith’s branded garments, and who comes into contact with the ‘boosters’ through an ultra-technological device.
Unity in workers’ struggles, Palmer said, is one of the central messages of the film: “We all have the same problems; whether we are black, Latino, Asian. (If only) we could unite, instead of fighting our own battles.
Moore, who plays the character of a profit-obsessed businesswoman opposed to the demands of her workers, said she felt a bit out of place when she started on Riley’s project.
Demi Moore and her new movie
“I thought at first that I wasn’t ‘cool’ enough to be in this, something so out of the ordinary,” said the actress, who won a Golden Globe last year for her performance in ‘The Substance’. “It was a character I wouldn’t have imagined myself in, and it gave me an incredible opportunity to take a risk.”
‘I Love Boosters’ marks Riley’s return to both film and SXSW. His first feature film, ‘Sorry To Bother You’ (‘Sorry To Bother You’) screened at this festival in 2018, following its premiere at Sundance.
The premiere took place at the Paramount Theater, an iconic building in downtown Austin, founded at the turn of the 20th century. The director’s family – his wife, children, sisters and father – were in the front rows, and the theater erupted in cheers and applause at the beginning and end of the film.
Riley’s directorial debut with ‘Sorry to Bother You’ won him the Independent Spirit Awards Best Picture and was number one on the National Board of Review’s Independent Film Top 10.
This feature film, also a satire with surreal elements and with the city of Oakland (California) as a backdrop, stars Lakeith Stenfield, who also participated in this second film, in a more secondary role.
SXSW runs through March 18 and will feature an ambitious lineup of more than 100 music projects, to be presented in 60 concert venues throughout the city, and some 120 feature films, including world premieres, as well as dozens of short films.
This year marks the 40th edition of the festival, which began in 1987 and attracts thousands of visitors, reported Agencia EFE, in a mix of established and emerging artists, as well as leaders from the technology and media sectors.
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