Horror comedy 'Bodies Bodies Bodies' asks who the real victims are

If I needed a quick pitch for Halina Reijn’s “Bodies Bodies Bodies,” I would call it Agatha Christie set among the TikTok crowd. This in itself is a fun premise — what happens when a group of twenty-somethings find themselves offline and facing a mortal threat? — but it doesn’t quite explain why the film works so well.

For the characters represent particular types of modern personalities, and are roasted mercilessly for their vapid quest for martyrdom. A cruel irony given they now must survive a slasher flick. Which is not to say “Bodies” has contempt for its characters. Quite the opposite.

A hurricane is coming and a group of mostly bourgeois young people gather at the secluded home of David (Pete Davidson). Or rather, David’s family, as it's not entirely clear what David does other than drugs. The character is a funny play on Davidson’s public persona, as there’s speculation among the other characters as to why women find him so irresistible. A greater mystery than anything in the film itself.

The storm arrives and the power goes out. Nothing is more ominous in a movie than a pitch-black hallway or stairwell where the audience’s mind is left to imagine the worst.

Then the worst happens: A brutally-sliced body turns up. Panic ensues. An unseen dispute the night before leaves the gathering with no working vehicle. There’s no reception. Even worse? The wi-fi is out.

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Speculation takes over as to who the killer is. An obvious candidate is Greg (Lee Pace), an older, recently-acquired boyfriend of Alice’s (Rachel Sennott), who could not be accounted for when an alibi is necessary. But there’s also Bee (Maria Bakalova), the exotic girlfriend of Sophie’s (Amandla Stenberg). Or it could be anyone within the existing circle of friends holding a grudge.

Further carnage ensues. Yet, the film’s main joke is these characters cannot stop fighting among themselves. The crisis brings out the worst in all of them and, true to form in a culture that exists largely on social media, their attention centers on pointing out the worst in each other. A fight breaks out over how the phrase “gaslit” has been used into oblivion. One character confesses they “hate-listen” to the other’s podcast.

As a podcaster, I can assure you there is no great offense.

There’s a lot of resentment between Sophie and the rest of her friends, as she was compelled to enter rehab while the rest of them continued their partying ways. Was that because she was Black and her drug use seems more nefarious to her white friends? Or is Sophie, who is established as having the richest family of any of her peers, trying to overplay her hand as aggrieved?

Instead of a traditional horror film, “Bodies” becomes more like one of those generational films where the characters finds themselves in close, tense quarters with no desire to continue following traditional social cues. Things get real and become more revealing. If anything, the film plays more like Jane Austen than Christie. If you find that comparison labored, think of “Bodies” like “The Big Chill” with more blood.

While all of this sounds funny, the film gets the audience to understand the world in which these characters exist. The dialogue and music, among other touches, gives us a peek into this youthful culture where being a victim is the ultimate sign of status. Regardless, it’s deliciously diabolical that becoming a victim of this unseen killer is what they wish to avoid.

You don’t have to agree with it or even like it to understand it. Feel free to walk out of the theater shaking your head, muttering “These kids today …” Just know someone was just as dismissive of you back in “the day,” and they were just as wrong.

Although that’s hard to do when you’ve just witnessed a finale as mean as it is uproarious. I squealed with delight.

The film is far from perfect. The scenario easily falls into repetition, and the cast has highs and lows. I will note some standouts. Bakalova, who last dazzled us with her comedic performance as Borat’s daughter, is a deeply-layered stranger.

Sennott is easily the funniest performance. After “Shiva Baby” and “Tahara,” I wondered if she would ever make a movie not centered around a funeral. But she finally does and she’s hilarious. I am unsure how anyone could make the line “I am body dysmorphic” a dizzying punchline, but she pulls it off.

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“Bodies” has played at Stadium 14 for a week, but starts at Ragtag Cinema this weekend. No one really should be subjected to a theater Regal Cinemas has all but let rot into the ground. If anything, the shoddy outdoor lighting at night causes a particular risk to patrons.

See it at Ragtag, and at least you can imbibe a spirit in the playful style of the film itself. It's fun and smart — a perfect anecdote to the dog days of August moviegoing.

In real life, James Owen is a lawyer and executive director of energy policy group Renew Missouri. He created/wrote for Filmsnobs.com from 2001-2007 before an extended stint as an on-air film critic for KY3, the NBC affiliate in Springfield. He was named a Top 20 Artist under the Age of 30 by The Kansas City Star when he was much younger than he is now. 

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Horror comedy 'Bodies Bodies Bodies' asks who the real victims are