This 2022 Comedy Uncovers The Problem With Gen Z

*Minor Assortment of Spoilers for Bodies Bodies Bodies

Bodies Bodies Bodies is a 2022 mystery comedy about six twenty-somethings (and Greg, one girls ‘forty-something’ year old boyfriend) who have a hurricane party in a mansion. Sometime into the night, they decide to play Bodies Bodies Bodies, a fun party game similar to Ghosts in the Graveyard, which takes a bloody turn. This movie stars Amandla Stenberg (The Hate U Give), Rachel Sennott (Shiva Baby), Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm), and Pete Davidson (SNL). This movie has been dubbed the Scream (1996) of Gen Z. Bodies Bodies Bodies is a messy, wet, and claustrophobic rollercoaster ride of what Gen Z will do without cell phone reception. It flies by at a crisp 95 minutes and is rated R for blood, violence, alcohol and drug use, language, and suspense.

This movie starts with two women passionately french kissing. There is no music in this opening scene, so we immediately start with a very intimate and personal look into the two main characters. Sophie (Amandla Stenberg) and Bee (Maria Bakalova) set the tone of their relationship with this two minute close-up shot of their kiss. When I first experienced this movie (and it truly was an experience, not just a watch), I was intrigued with why the director made this the opening to a whodunnit movie. After reflecting, I realized that the movie starts and ends with the same two characters, and that this moment was the peak of their relationship, right before the backstabbing began and truths were told. The beginning and the end both involve the same two characters at complete opposite ends of a relationship, getting to that other end by showing their true colors throughout the night.

My favorite aspect of Bodies Bodies Bodies is the cast. The cast has only eight actors, so the claustrophobic environment makes this a fascinating character study. You feel connected to the characters even if you get less time with them. The only question is that in a situation of high tension, unearthed secrets, and no contact with the outside world, how long until the pot bubbles over?

I want to talk about lighting in Bodies Bodies Bodies because while it’s not conventional, its technology is impressive. Since this movie takes place in one house, throughout one night, lighting this movie on paper seems impossible, but the way cinematographer Jasper Wolf uses light fits perfectly with the story's themes. About 20 minutes into the Bodies Bodies Bodies, the power inside the mansion goes out, and in response, every character pulls out their phone flashlight, which is shown in the wide release poster. With the message of Bodies Bodies Bodies being “Gen Z will bring out the worst parts of each other without technology,” the choice of

making the main light source of this movie that of a phone is genius, especially because the characters use them to shine a light on the terrible things they find out about one another.

With a movie about how Gen Z will slowly turn on each other without a constant distraction like phones or drugs, it’s important to talk about how. One character dies by taking too many downers and kills herself falling downstairs. Another character gets accused of being the killer, leading to him being surrounded and beaten over the head in “self defense”. My favorite death is how a character kills themself trying to get “Tik Tok famous.” With these being the themes of many deaths in Bodies Bodies Bodies, each loss has much meaning alluding to what the director was trying to say. All the deaths, and the reactions to those deaths, mirror how Gen Z will end up killing each other, and how we will justify doing so.

Speaking of justifying actions, I want to talk about Rachel Sennott, an absolute star in acting and comedic timing. Sennott has a fantastic monologue about how hard it is to be a content creator nowadays and how much she has to sacrifice to put out her podcast. As she says, “Putting together a podcast is really hard, you have to make a google calendar and everything.” This quote is a perfect example of how entitled her character is, with her only struggle in making a podcast is that she had to make a Google calendar. I just wanted to shout out an up and coming talent and recommend looking out for her next project.

In conclusion, Bodies Bodies Bodies is a fascinating look into what can hypothetically happen when Gen Z has to solve high-tension conflicts without distraction. This movie is very shallow, dumb, and entertaining at first glance, but when you dig deeper into why characters do certain things, and how they convey the theme, it suddenly becomes a brilliant social commentary and cautionary tale. Just the sheer amount of substance in this 95-minute movie is, for lack of a better term, impressive. I would highly recommend watching Bodies Bodies Bodies both for entertainment and critical thinking to get the full view of this modern classic. Check out Bodies Bodies Bodies when it comes out on streaming and physical release to form your own opinion. Check my Letterboxd for more short film reviews.