The Bad Batch

Jim Carrey in The Bad Batch

Ana Lily Amirpour's The Bad Batch sunk without a trace and I am perhaps being charitable when I describe it as an interesting failure. A post-apocalyptic, dystopian feature with dollops of cannibalism, The Bad Batch has one of the lamest scripts I've encountered in some time and runs out of narrative drive halfway through. Its leading lady, Suki Waterhouse, struggles with her Texas accent and is a cinematic black hole throughout. Dialogue scenes with Ms. Waterhouse and any other cast member flag badly. Jason Momoa fares slightly better, but the cast is hit or miss. Jim Carrey is affecting as a hermit, but Giovanni Ribisi grates as "The Screamer". Keanu Reeves is effectively louche as a cult leader, but is underused.

What makes me think Ms. Amirpour has a future in film is that The Bad Batch looks pretty good. Her use of color here is as effective as her use of black and white in A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. A bonding scene with Ms. Waterhouse teaching a child to use makeup is suitably swathed in warm reds. The Bad Batch is a misstep, but Ms. Amirpour has too good of an eye to be counted out. (9/27/17)