Sorry to Bother You is a film by Boots Riley. In his satirical directorial debut, he explores racial bias and capitalist ambitions. The filmmaker greatly stresses that he does not analyze capitalism specifically in the way some viewers implied. Riley simply tells the story that he intended to. Everything beyond that is just an after-effect of the film but not it’s the primary theme.
In the film, Cassius Green, unemployed and therefore unable to pay rent, is now living at his uncle’s garage with Detroit, her girlfriend. He manages to get a job at a telemarketing firm where he has to change his voice to appeal to more customers and scale-up in the company. Some co-workers form a union to fight against the firm and ask Green to join them. The firm offers to promote Green which keeps him away from the protests as he works long hours. Green and the protesters get into an altercation in front of the company building that turns into an Internet sensation.
As Green climbs the corporate ladder, his relationships begin to corrode especially with Detroit. He starts to feel uncomfortable with the actions of the company that he works for. Green is offered the biggest deal of his life on the condition that he is transformed into an equisapien. He declines the offer and decides to go against the company. His efforts are futile Green is fired and moves back into his uncle’s garage. Green eventually transforms into an equisapien and leads a revolt against the company. Sorry to Bother You is a revolutionary film that seeks to break the mold of what film is or what they are supposed to mean. It also looks into individual choices of selfishness and selflessness and how they impact the human psyche.
