Raucous if not reckless, Bottoms is at once earnest and obscene, well constructed in its crudity and often laugh out loud funny. It's a high school-set coming of age queer comedy which sounds like a narrow overlap but it's in the same tradition as Superbad, Anchorman, Fight Club and the Art of Self-Defense.
That might seem an incredibly specific and messy confluence of ideas, but even at my remove from adolescence that seems, still, apposite. Directed by Emma Seligman and co-written with Rachel Sennot it reunites them in something potentially more approachable than the sterling Shiva Baby. Editor Hanna Park and cinematographer Maria Rusche both return too, and while Sennott is on-screen in both she's the only one returning in front of the camera.
In a huge and diverse cast the most common trait is quality. Sennott as Pj and her best friend Josie (Ayo Edebiri) might go through...
That might seem an incredibly specific and messy confluence of ideas, but even at my remove from adolescence that seems, still, apposite. Directed by Emma Seligman and co-written with Rachel Sennot it reunites them in something potentially more approachable than the sterling Shiva Baby. Editor Hanna Park and cinematographer Maria Rusche both return too, and while Sennott is on-screen in both she's the only one returning in front of the camera.
In a huge and diverse cast the most common trait is quality. Sennott as Pj and her best friend Josie (Ayo Edebiri) might go through...
- 11/25/2023
- by Andrew Robertson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The world of “Bottoms” isn’t always the most coherent (better not to apply any logic to why a high school football mascot has a felt dick); but being a teenager isn’t the most rational experience. One of the film’s great strengths is how director and co-writer Emma Seligman creates a flexible reality for the world of its perennial losers Pj (Rachel Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edebiri). The two heroes start a self defense club in an effort to get laid, and what starts as a hilariously thin ruse culminates with in the girls punching, kicking, and pounding a rival football team to death in order to save doofy jock Jeff (Nicholas Galitzine) from sprinklers filled with pineapple juice.
“It was like ‘Scott Pilgrim’ in a John Hughes world,” said Seligman when they were a guest on IndieWire’ Filmmaker Toolkit podcast.
The climatic fight scene is a perfect...
“It was like ‘Scott Pilgrim’ in a John Hughes world,” said Seligman when they were a guest on IndieWire’ Filmmaker Toolkit podcast.
The climatic fight scene is a perfect...
- 9/9/2023
- by Sarah Shachat
- Indiewire
‘Bottoms’ Review: Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri Burst With Female Rage in Punchy High School Comedy
If high school is perpetual pain then no one seems to be feeling the agony more acutely than P.J. (Rachel Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edebiri of “The Bear”), the underdog protagonists of Emma Seligman’s madcap, raunchy teen comedy, “Bottoms.”
Indeed, these best-friends-for-life never seemed to have found a trusted clique of their own. And they can’t really blame their unpopularity on their sexual orientation as lesbians, either. Not when the well-liked and popular gay kids get high-fived in the hallways by their straight classmates for putting on stupendous musical theater shows. In their own words, P.J and Josie are ostracized and bullied not because they are gay, but because they are “gay, untalented and ugly.”
Not the right combo of qualities that will get them laid with the members of the cheerleading squad, particularly their respective crushes Brittany (Kaia Gerber) and Isabel (Havana Rose Liu). So...
Indeed, these best-friends-for-life never seemed to have found a trusted clique of their own. And they can’t really blame their unpopularity on their sexual orientation as lesbians, either. Not when the well-liked and popular gay kids get high-fived in the hallways by their straight classmates for putting on stupendous musical theater shows. In their own words, P.J and Josie are ostracized and bullied not because they are gay, but because they are “gay, untalented and ugly.”
Not the right combo of qualities that will get them laid with the members of the cheerleading squad, particularly their respective crushes Brittany (Kaia Gerber) and Isabel (Havana Rose Liu). So...
- 8/21/2023
- by Tomris Laffly
- The Wrap
Bottoms is bloody good fun. In the high school sex comedy, which premiered at SXSW, two lesbian students — played by Rachel Sennott (The Idol) and Ayo Edebiri (The Bear) — are so eager to lose their virginity that they start an after-school fight club, all in the hopes of seducing cheerleaders. Due out Aug. 25 from Orion Pictures and MGM, the raucous movie is director Emma Seligman’s follow-up to her Independent Spirit Award-winning debut, Shiva Baby, in which Sennott (who co-wrote Bottoms) played a bisexual Jewish woman who attends a shiva where both her ex-girlfriend and current sugar daddy are present. Seligman, who uses she and they pronouns, spoke with THR about making the film, her own identity and her thoughts on authentic casting for LGBTQ roles.
How did Bottoms come together?
We were really lucky. Rachel and I had been writing this since 2017. After Shiva Baby got into SXSW, Alison Small...
How did Bottoms come together?
We were really lucky. Rachel and I had been writing this since 2017. After Shiva Baby got into SXSW, Alison Small...
- 6/18/2023
- by Degen Pener
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A term I hear a lot to describe slick, antic-driven movies with airy narratives is “fun.” (I’ve used it, too, about smooth-brain films I realize after a few days I didn’t really like but had to say something about.) We praise these films for serviceable visuals, steady direction and a handful of star performances. We forgive the plot holes and ignore the jarring tonal shifts. As these movies swerve from one farcical situation to another, we’re sometimes nagged by a creeping ambivalence. But we shrug it off once we remember the few times we laughed. “Fun” counts for something. Right?
Yes, but also no. Emma Seligman’s Bottoms is the most recent case in point. To me, real fun — ephemeral, subjective — often entails leaning into a lot of un-fun things: earnestness, character development and even restraint in service of a broader purpose. It’s work I don...
Yes, but also no. Emma Seligman’s Bottoms is the most recent case in point. To me, real fun — ephemeral, subjective — often entails leaning into a lot of un-fun things: earnestness, character development and even restraint in service of a broader purpose. It’s work I don...
- 3/12/2023
- by Lovia Gyarkye
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The cinematography field is packed with immeasurable talent but not equal opportunities, particularly for women. When a tragedy occurs such as the loss of Halyna Hutchins, who died at 42 after being shot by a prop firearm on the set of the indie film “Rust,” the absence is felt throughout the industry.
In the 93 years of the Academy Awards, Rachel Morrison is the only woman ever to be nominated for cinematography, for her work on Dee Rees’ “Mudbound.” And the cinematographers’ branch has a poor track record for honoring diverse and inclusive artists. Case in point: A Black cinematographer has never won the category, and only two have been nominated (Remi Adefarasin for 1998’s “Elizabeth” and Bradford Young for 2016’s “Arrival”).
This year, multiple women are bringing their A-game to high-profile films. Ari Wegner creates distinct visions in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” from Netflix and Janicza Bravo’s “Zola” from A24.
In the 93 years of the Academy Awards, Rachel Morrison is the only woman ever to be nominated for cinematography, for her work on Dee Rees’ “Mudbound.” And the cinematographers’ branch has a poor track record for honoring diverse and inclusive artists. Case in point: A Black cinematographer has never won the category, and only two have been nominated (Remi Adefarasin for 1998’s “Elizabeth” and Bradford Young for 2016’s “Arrival”).
This year, multiple women are bringing their A-game to high-profile films. Ari Wegner creates distinct visions in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” from Netflix and Janicza Bravo’s “Zola” from A24.
- 11/4/2021
- by Clayton Davis
- Variety Film + TV
“Dating & New York” has a natural feel for its Manhattan milieu and the various ways in which cell phones and dating apps have reconfigured courtship dynamics. Unfortunately, those are the only fresh components of this otherwise routine romantic comedy, which despite a number of self-conscious touches that suggest an innovative approach to familiar material, Winning chemistry between its stars may help it make inroads with millennial audiences when it debuts in theaters and on VOD on Sept. 10 (following its online premiere at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival), but most will likely find their own iPhones a more engaging viewing option.
On a dating app called “Meet Cute,” Milo and Wendy (Francesca Reale) hit it off, sleep together and then go their separate ways, only to reconnect after their respective best friends, Hank (Brian Muller) and Jessie (Catherine Cohen), fall for each other. Rather than attempt a traditional union,...
On a dating app called “Meet Cute,” Milo and Wendy (Francesca Reale) hit it off, sleep together and then go their separate ways, only to reconnect after their respective best friends, Hank (Brian Muller) and Jessie (Catherine Cohen), fall for each other. Rather than attempt a traditional union,...
- 9/10/2021
- by Nick Schager
- Variety Film + TV
Watch: 2019 Fest Fave Short ‘About The People’ Optioned For Series: Prescient Take On Race Relations
After the death of George Floyd and the protest aftermath, some films that came out in recent years take on added resonance, particularly those that involve the murder of black youths at the hands of quick triggered and fearful cops. Features include Fruitvale Station and The Hate U Give. I was fascinated by a most prescient 2019 short film sent to me by its makers, who intend on turning it into a limited series. On a leisurely Sunday, have a look at About The People, a Sterling Milan-directed drama that got strong reaction on the festival circuit last year, starting with an attempt by a powerful group of Black men to use their collective influence to force change, rather than waiting for it to be implemented by a white establishment that is only now reacting to the serious injustice people of color endure too often. I’ve got more after...
- 7/12/2020
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
"You make the image." A must watch documentary about the filmmaking community and how wonderful it can be. Cinematographer is a short documentary made by Demi Waldron, a working Dp who made this extraordinary film to highlight a few great women already working as cinematographers. In this short, six women share the challenges and the complexities of life as a modern cinematographer: Reed Morano, Autumn Eakin, Kate Arizmendi (Cam), Maria Rusche (Milkwater), Allison Anderson (Your Name Isn't English), and Emoni Aikens (Hell Fire and Glory). Each one shares honest insights that will definitely inspire and encourage others. The reminds me to recommend another documentary, Cameraperson, if you haven't seen it yet. This short doc is terrific and I just want to show it to everyone I know in the industry. It's a touching, honest, and highly motivational film about some of the most important ...
- 4/19/2019
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
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