The Bad Batch

The Bad Batch
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Ana Lily Amirpour
Produced by
Written by Ana Lily Amirpour
Starring
Cinematography Lyle Vincent
Edited by Alex O'Flinn
Production
company
Distributed by Neon
Release date
  • September 6, 2016 (2016-09-06) (Venice)
  • June 23, 2017 (2017-06-23) (United States)
Running time
 115 minutes[1]
Country United States
Language English
Budget $6 million[2]
Box office $201,890[3]

The Bad Batch is a 2016 American black comedy thriller film directed and written by Ana Lily Amirpour. The film stars Suki Waterhouse, Jason Momoa, Jim Carrey, Giovanni Ribisi and Keanu Reeves.

It was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival.[4] It was released in theaters on June 23, 2017, by Neon.[5]

Plot

In an unspecified near future, a young woman named Arlen (Suki Waterhouse) is processed and dropped inside a fenced-in area outside of Texas where people being deemed undesirable by society (the "bad batch") are forced to live and fend for themselves as outcasts. A sign declares that the area is considered outside of the U.S. and that American laws and citizenship no longer apply. Shortly after, Arlen is attacked by two women in a golf cart. When she wakes, she finds herself chained up and discovers she has been captured by cannibals, who remove first her right arm, then her right leg. Arlen covers herself in feces, causing one of the cannibals to untie her so she can be washed, and takes that opportunity to kill the woman and escape on a skateboard. She is picked up in the desert by the Hermit (Jim Carrey), a mute vagrant who takes her to a makeshift town named Comfort where she is cared for and given a prosthetic leg.

Five months later, a mostly healed Arlen heads out to the desert, where she sees a golf cart similar to the one owned by the cannibals who captured her. She finds a dark-skinned woman and little girl scavenging among a garbage dump. Realizing they are indeed a part of the cannibal community, Arlen shoots and kills the woman as a revenge for her ordeal. She takes the young girl back with her to Comfort, and is seen doing so by the Hermit. In Comfort, Arlen goes to a rave held by the Dream (Keanu Reeves), the cult-like leader of Comfort, and loses track of the child, who is taken in by the Dream. Meanwhile, Miami Man (Jason Momoa), the father of the child she took, notices his daughter is missing, goes looking for her, and finds the dead woman. The Hermit, in exchange for a portrait, tells Miami Man to "find Comfort." Arlen drops acid at the rave and wanders out into the desert, where she stumbles upon Miami Man, who recognizes her as someone from Comfort. Upon threat of death, he demands that she accompany him to Comfort, where she'll be able to retrieve his daughter.

Arlen and Miami Man grow closer on their journey to Comfort. He defeats another cannibal who's looking to eat her, and reveals that he was put into the lawless territory because he was an illegal immigrant from Cuba. Before they arrive, Arlen is rescued by a man from Comfort, who shoots and wounds Miami Man and returns Arlen to the town. Feeling guilty, she begins to look for Miami Man's daughter. She eventually finds her living at The Dream's mansion. Arlen goes to visit The Dream, who explains that Comfort runs on the drugs that his many concubines make. When Arlen offers to join his harem, he accepts her offer, but Arlen instead uses her concealed gun to hold one of the pregnant members of the harem hostage, this way managing to extract Miami Man's daughter. They head out of Comfort in a golf cart, and soon reunite with Miami Man, who has been rescued and healed by the Hermit. Arlen returns the child to Miami Man, and tells him she wants to stay with him. Miami Man tries to discourage her, deeming her unable to survive out in the desert roamed by cannibals; but he does not send Arlen away. The daughter then asks for spaghetti, as she had started to grow accustomed to good things in Comfort. Instead, Miami Man kills his daughter's pet rabbit showing one final time the hardship they will face in the desert life. As the three sit at a campfire eating the rabbit, the daughter is teary-eyed over the loss of her pet. Miami Man rubs his daughter's back and then he and Arlen look into each other's eyes, smiling.

Cast

Production

In January 2015, Ana Lily Amirpour was announced to be directing the film, while Megan Ellison would produce under her Annapurna Pictures banner, and Danny Gabai and Sina Sayyah would produce under their Vice Films banner.[6] In March 2015, Keanu Reeves, Jim Carrey, Jason Momoa, Suki Waterhouse, and Diego Luna joined the film.[7]

Filming

Principal photography on the film began on April 8, 2015 in Los Angeles.[8] Film was also shot in Niland and Bombay Beach, California.[9]

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 6, 2016.[10] Shortly after, Netflix and Screen Media Films acquired SVOD and theatrical distribution rights to the film, respectively.[11][12] However, Neon later acquired distribution rights to the film.[13] The film also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2016.[14][15] It was released in a limited release on June 23, 2017[16] and was made available on Digital HD from Amazon Video and iTunes on June 22, 2017. The Bad Batch DVD and Blu-ray were released on September 19, 2017.[17]

Critical reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 42% based on 84 reviews, with a weighted average of 5.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "The Bad Batch has its moments, but it's too thinly written and self-indulgent to justify its length or compensate for its slow narrative drift."[18] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 62 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[19]

Guy Lodge of Variety gave the film a negative review, writing that "though there's much to savor in the pic's lavishly distressed visuals and soundscape, its narrative feels increasingly stretched and desultory."[20] Lee Marshall of Screen International also gave the film a negative review, concluding that "the story runs out of steam – with a full ninety minutes still to go."[21] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter concluded that "the movie is overlong and not without draggy patches, but it's sustained enough to keep you watching."[22]

References

  1. ↑ "Venezia 73". Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  2. ↑ Wolfe, April (May 23, 2017). "Director Ana Lily Amirpour Makes American Movies Weird Again". LA Weekly. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
  3. ↑ "The Bad Batch". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Venice Film Festival 2016". Deadline Hollywood. 28 July 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
  5. ↑ Nordine, Michael. "'The Bad Batch' Trailer and Release Date | IndieWire". www.indiewire.com. Retrieved 2017-09-29.
  6. ↑ Yamato, Jen (January 6, 2015). "Annapurna, Vice Board Ana Lily Amirpour's Dystopian Love Story 'Bad Batch'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  7. ↑ Patten, Dominic (March 19, 2015). "Keanu Reeves & Jim Carrey Top 'The Bad Batch' Cast; Jason Momoa Confirmed". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  8. ↑ Pihl, Tommy (March 24, 2015). "Filming of "The Bad Batch" begins on April 8". jimcarreyonline.com. Retrieved March 27, 2015.
  9. ↑ PEREZ, ABIGAI (April 27, 2015). ""Bad Batch" Brawley Casting Call Brings Out Something "Extra"". thedesertreview.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
  10. ↑ "The Bad Batch". Venice Film Festival. Archived from the original on August 23, 2016. Retrieved August 28, 2016.
  11. ↑ Fleming Jr, Mike (September 6, 2016). "Netflix Buys SVOD Rights To Venice Cannibal Fairy Tale 'The Bad Batch'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
  12. ↑ Busch, Anita (September 15, 2016). "Screen Media Films Acquires U.S. Rights To 'The Bad Batch' – Toronto". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  13. ↑ "The Bad Batch Trailer Reveals a Cannibal Wasteland". February 13, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2017.
  14. ↑ Pond, Steve (August 9, 2016). "Toronto Film Festival Adds Movies by Leonardo DiCaprio, Werner Herzog, Marlon Brando". The Wrap. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  15. ↑ "The Bad Batch". Toronto International Film Festival. Retrieved August 28, 2016.
  16. ↑ Staff, Vice (June 16, 2017). "Watch a New Clip from Ana Lily Amirpour's 'The Bad Batch'". Vice. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
  17. ↑ "The Bad Batch DVD Release Date September 19, 2017". DVDs Release Dates. Retrieved 2017-09-29.
  18. ↑ "The Bad Batch". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 18, 2017.
  19. ↑ "The Bad Batch reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
  20. ↑ Lodge, Guy (September 6, 2016). "Film Review: 'The Bad Batch'". Variety. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  21. ↑ Marshall, Lee (September 6, 2016). "'The Bad Batch': Venice Review". Screen International. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  22. ↑ Rooney, David (September 6, 2016). "'The Bad Batch': Venice Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
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