Zola (2021) * 1/2

Directed by:  Janicza Bravo

Starring:  Taylour Paige, Riley Keough, Colman Domingo, Nicholas Braun

I approached Zola as a stranger in a strange land since I am not nor have I ever been on Twitter.   Zola is based on a reputedly famed Twitter thread from 2015 in which a young waitress/stripper named Zola (Paige) tags along with another stripper named Stefani (Keough) on a trip to Tampa.   Zola believes the trip is to maybe dance at a few strip joints to pick up a few harmless dollars.   Stefani's "roommate", who does the driving, is actually her pimp named X (Domino) whose plan is to pimp out Stefani and Zola at a swank hotel.   This is not what Zola signed up for, but it doesn't stop her from posting selfies and helping Stefani at least make the most bang for the buck.  

Also along for the ride is Stefani's cuckolded boyfriend Derrick (Braun), who sits by pathetically waiting for her to come home to the dive motel they initially checked into.  I couldn't imagine having to travel twenty hours in the same car with this group of wounded individuals.   Zola tweets to her followers (and it seems there were many), "Y'all wanna hear a story about why me and this bitch here fell out????????"  Many did and reportedly hung on every tweet.   After watching this film, I wonder if they felt it was worth it. 

The story itself has a "you had to be there" quality to it.   I wasn't much into the story or the people in it.   I wondered why X broke into an African accent (or was it Jamaican) when he became enraged.  Was this true or dramatic license?   I wonder what about Stefani made Zola want to accompany her to Tampa when they barely knew each other.   Stefani uses a, ahem, culturally appropriated manner of speaking which was likely accurate but no less annoying.   Zola has boundaries, while Stefani clearly does not.   Nothing about this tale would make me want to wait with bated breath for the next installment.

Once we endure the lengthy setup and second act, the payoff is a story which ends without a resolution.  Maybe that was a blessing in disguise.   This way we didn't have to spend any more time with these wretched people than absolutely necessary.   One character winds up jumping off a balcony in order to escape his situation.   I can understand why.