A Review of Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die

Gore Verbinski is one of my favorite filmmakers, not just for his considerable talent, but for his creative spark, his not-so-subtle themes and pure sense of fun that runs through his movies. His most recognizable efforts would be the first three Pirates of the Caribbean films, which I would argue are his most subtle movies, which, of course, still has his messages hammered into your face with a sledgehammer. (Seriously, the first three POTC movies are the most anti-imperialist, anti-colonialist movies I’ve ever seen. I’m not joking; the overarching villains are the British empire and the East India Trading Company, who are defeated by a loose confederation of anarchistic pirates from a diverse set of nations.) Even his less than perfect movies, like A Cure for Wellness and the Lone Ranger, both of which suffered from plotting issues and casting problems respectively, are nevertheless a certain amount of fun. 

But imagine Gore Verbinski directed a movie where decided to take his gloves off. Imagine a movie where an AI is the villain who has enslaved humanity through social media slop. Imagine said movie takes place in a world where violence is so widespread, school shooting are commonplace and parents treat it like just another Tuesday. Well you don’t have to imagine that movie because it exists, Gore Verbinski’s effort from last year, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die. It’s set in a world like I just described, but it’s main plot is about a weird-looking man in a plastic raincoat holding a diner hostage while he selects a group of people who will help him destroy an AI that will eventually enslave humanity. Oh, and he claims to be from the future. 

Strap the hell in. 

Theatrical release poster, credit to the artist and Briarcliff Entertainment

Sam Rockwell plays the man from the future, adding another excellent performance to his career. Supporting roles are played by Haley Lu Richardson, Michael Peña, Zazie Beetz and Juno Temple, who are all superb. I also want to shout out screenwriter Matthew Robinson, from  what I can tell this project developed from a story centered on Michael Peña’s character into the sci-fi flick it ended up as.

I obviously like this movie. It entered my radar earlier this year, where I was surprised to hear it had been released last year, and more or less slipped under the radar, grossing only $9Mil on a $20Mil budget. Well, it’s currently streaming on Hulu and available for rent, so go ahead and watch it. Seriously, don’t keep reading me. Spend an afternoon with it, absorb its surprisingly nuanced take on AI. Yeah, that was the greatest surprise in this movie. While it’s very much opposed to AI, it still recognizes it’s emergence as force in the tech industry, calling for appropriate safeguards. Of course, it later subverts this take and calls for AI’s utter destruction and human distancing from all forms of technology, so make of that what you will.

Point is, it’s a laugh riot. It’s a little haphazard with it’s plot, but it’s ultimately a emotionally effective story about remaining human. If we can.