Sorry to Bother You (2018)

In an alternate present-day version of Oakland, telemarketer Cassius Green discovers a magical key to professional success, propelling him into a universe of greed.

Director:

Boots Riley

Writer:

Boots Riley

Stars:

LaKeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Jermaine Fowler

20 wins & 54 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
LaKeith Stanfield	...	Cassius Green (as Lakeith Stanfield)
Tessa Thompson	...	Detroit
Jermaine Fowler	...	Salvador
Omari Hardwick	...	Mr. _______
Terry Crews	...	Sergio
Kate Berlant	...	Diana DeBauchery
Michael X. Sommers	...	Johnny
Danny Glover	...	Langston
Steven Yeun	...	Squeeze
Armie Hammer	...	Steve Lift
Robert Longstreet	...	Anderson
David Cross	...	Cassius's White Voice (voice)
Patton Oswalt	...	Mr. _______'s White Voice (voice)
Lily James	...	Detroit's White British Voice (voice)
Forest Whitaker	...	First Equisapien / Demarius

Storyline

In an alternate version of Oakland, Cassius Green gets a telemarketing job and finds the commission paid job a dispiriting struggle as a black man selling to predominately white people over the phone. That changes when a veteran advises him to use his "white voice," and the attitude behind it to make himself more appealing to customers. With a bizarrely high-pitched accent, Cassius becomes a success even as his colleagues form a union to improve their miserable jobs. Regardless, Cassius finds himself promoted a "Power Caller" selling the most morally abhorrent but lucrative products and services as his connection to his girlfriend and colleagues fades away. However, Cassius' conscience arises anew as he finds himself in the midst of his boss' bizarre world of condescending bigoted decadence and his sinister plans to create the perfect subservient work force with Cassius' help.

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Plot Keywords:

absurdism | social satire | oakland california | telemarketing | slave labor | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

14A

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Michel Gondry is paid tribute in the director's name for the claymation sequence, Michel Dongry. Gondry's influence is clear in the scenes where the garage transforms into the luxury room.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Anderson: So it says here that you were manager of the Rusty Scupper restaurant for five years. And then a bank teller at Bank of Oakland between 2014 to 2016. Oh, and you were employee of the month! What's that trophy in the bag there?
Cassius Green: Oh, Oakland High moot court champion. I'm a salesman at heart.
Anderson: *That* is intriguing. Mainly because I was the branch manager at the Bank of Oakland between 2014 and 2016, and you, Mr. Green, you never fucking worked there.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Movies You Missed This Summer (2018)

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Soundtracks

Level It Up
Written by Boots Riley, Damion Gallegos, and Lionel Holoman
Performed by The Coup

User Reviews

Sorry to Bother You - Dark Social Commentary.

The beginning is very like 'The Wolf of Wall Street', this film is also all about capitalism and greed. Our hero, Cassius is struggling to make end meet, he applies to be a telemarketer and quickly promoted to a 'Power Caller'

He discovers that senior management are exploiting its employees to generate more profit (you'll see how towards the end). The humour at the beginning turns into dark social commentary with lots of symbolism.

I'm always apprehensive when a poster says 'the best film of the year by far' Well ... it's not the 'best', but very good and definitely different.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 July 2018 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sorry to Bother You

Filming Locations:

Oakland, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,200,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$727,266, 8 July 2018

Gross USA:

$17,493,096

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$18,170,707

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinereach, Forest Whitaker's Significant Productions, MACRO

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1