"Sorry To Bother You"

Boots Riley’s “Sorry To Bother You” is that rare thing – a film by an avowedly socialist American writer-director which offers a coherent, satirical critique of capitalism.

It stars Lakeith Stanfield as Cassius “Cash” Green, a discontented young black man who takes a soul-sucking job at a call-centre and, by learning to use his “white” voice, manages to make enough sales to see him promoted to the next level in the company – a level where the product on offer is something rather more sinister than magazine subscriptions.

"Sorry To Bother You" 

The film manages to skewer several aspects of capitalism – ruthless exploitation, the incorporation of dissenters, public acceptance of its excesses – all the while maintaining a down-to-Earth tone of surreal humour which calls to mind Lindsay Anderson and Alex Cox as much as Spike Lee. Refreshingly, for an African-American film, it does not focus on guns, gangs and racism, although these are tangible elements of the background; and the soundtrack, largely by Riley and Tune-Yards, is more hippyish indie than hip-hop. 

The supporting cast – including Tessa Thompson as Cassius’ artist girlfriend, Steven Yeun as his revolutionary workmate, and Armie Hammer as the ultimate dude/boss (alongside an all-too brief appearance from Danny Glover) – is impressive, and the comedy is pointed and bitter rather than shallowly uproarious, leaving a bad taste in the mouth for all the right reasons. And the turn towards nightmarishness is a masterstroke.