“Not Okay” was More than Okay
Hulu's newest buzz is around the Not Okay movie, directed by Quinn Shephard, starring Zoey Deutch (Danni Sanders), and Dylan O'Brien (Colin). The storyline follows a young Brooklynite, Danni Sanders, and her irritating and unspeakable path towards the fame and attention she's always craved. Another movie portraying social media, the lengths its creators go to for five minutes of fame, and how absolutely mental a decent-looking guy can drive you.
A film poster of Not Okay (2022)
Not Okay is a world drenched in spring/summer 21 fashion statements with bleached-front hair strands, tacky monogram phone cases, multicolored French tips, and SheIN clothes. The fashion department was kind of a genius when it came to this because my first thought was...influencer trends. The rise of TikTok during the pandemic gave us these tacky fashion trends that have now depleted, but for an outsider looking in, it sets the tone of the film.
A still of Danni Sanders (Zoey Deutch) in Not Okay (2022).
I recently learned that Quinn Shephard took inspiration from Bong Joon Ho's Korean thrillers. To me, Parasite (2019) was the first to come into mind alongside Adam McKay's Don't Look Up (2021) and Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Fleabag (2016, 2019). The underlying dark theme paired with the comedic and second-hand-embarassement-inducing surface made me say, "I think I've seen this film before".
The first frame of the movie looks like a viewer discretion warning, so I didn't pay much attention to it except for the fact that in bold were the words:
"This film contains flashing lights, themes of trauma, and an unlikable female protagonist".
I was ready to meet this "female protagonist" because I knew I was going to just tell myself well, at least she looks hot doing it. Man, was I wrong. Why didn't they just caption it, "an unlikable female antagonist"? An unlikable protagonist is just an antagonist of their own creation.
As the film goes on, we learn that Danni works at a magazine called "Depravity" and brands herself as a writer (minus the writing part). Baseline, she's not good at her job, but that doesn't stop her from going after what she wants from it: attention and fame. Our unlikable female protagonist takes matters into her own hands by going to a writer’s retreat in Paris, posting photos in front of Paris' biggest and most romantic landmarks, learning a few French makeup tips from Vogue, and buying all the baguettes. But, plot twist, she's doing all of this from the comfort of her own apartment and never got invited to any retreat. All is well until there's a major bombing in Paris and all of a sudden Danni's phone is blowing up (no pun intended) and all her devices are playing news channels on loop. What happens next is exactly what you'd expect. Danni writes about her experience, through stolen words from school shooting survivor, Rowan Aldren, whom she befriends in her support group she attends to see how actual victims of trauma feel, since she actually has none and needs to fake it. And then, she makes it...and she makes it BIG in the influencer world.
Danni has noticeable flaws, apart from sociopathic tendencies. Throughout the film, she sees the hooded bomber everywhere she goes, despite not being in Paris when tragedy struck. He symbolizes Danni's inner monologue. She knows that what she's doing is morally wrong, but, to Danni, the fame trumps everything she's ever had in her life. Danni also isn't reacting properly to situations where she should be feeling panic or sadness. When her colleagues or support group ask how she's been feeling, she doesn't react in the way someone who has survived a bomber should react. She's NOT okay. On top of this, she's lying to everyone to get the praise of a MAN? Yes, the man is a beloved social media star and local pothead Colin, who can barely remember his name 33% of the time. Isn't that something? Faking being a bombing victim to get seven minutes in heaven and MAYBE a boyfriend.
But I think beyond this, Rowan's character deserved the spotlight. One thing director Quinn Shephard got right was how actual activists and their causes get shoved off to the side while the somehow crazy, but less important news took the cake. When it comes to school shootings in the United States, we can say we live in a shit hole. Fearless survivors like David Hogg and X González stand sobbing in front of the Senate while they're laughed at and told to "shut the fuck up" for wanting to make the world a safer place for everyone. But this stays in the news for 3 minutes and an actor slapping another actor makes headlines for 3 months straight. For me, Danni taking advantage of Rowan's hurt, pain, and wonderful spoken-word poetry from the start deemed her the "unlikable female protagonist".
"Not Okay" depicted the new world consumed by social media and influencers so accurately. It showed that real issues will matter less while the meaningless ones rage on. I truly do hope we see more of these heavy themes interwoven in comedy because it could just be the next best way to get everyone's attention. This movie appealed to me a lot because I am allowed to think critically about the internet and all the things it's perpetuated, from the good to the bad. If I'm allowed to criticize and learn from the things going on in our society, I can only change my attitude for the better.
