Zola: A Masterclass in Bringing a Twitter Thread to Life

Y'all want to hear a story about how this viral Twitter thread turned into a mesmerizing stripper misadventure fever dream starring Taylour Paige and Riley Keogh?

Inspired by a viral Twitter thread written back in 2015, this film reimagines storytelling. Instead of focusing on teaching its viewers and characters about growth in progress, it is here to create the world of Zola. This outlook on storytelling feels refreshing and brings the audience into the movie.

The film feels like watching a play. The dialogue is so quick and intelligent and as they are acted out by the characters it flows so well. The colorful direction of Janicza Bravo paired with the writing of Jeremy O. Harris is the perfect combination and I couldn't imagine anyone else taking on this story.

Zola makes you feel uncomfortable as you watch her live out the Twitter thread. It's not about what happens but it is about how Zola tells it. The way she tells it isn't ripped straight from the tweets but it is based on how Bravo displays it on screen and mixes together different storytelling vehicles that keep it fun and fresh.

Taylour Paige as Zola is an incredible performance as she plays this character stuck in the worst situation as cool and collected on the outside but freaking out on the inside. Just by "luck she runs into Stefani (Riley Keough) and gets dragged into something she definitely wasn't expecting. Stefani turns out to be a sex worker and her roommate X (Colman Domingo) is her pimp.

As you watch the film, you feel like you are trapped with Zola and imagining what would you do in that situation. As Future Zola gives voiceovers on what is about to happen it is interesting to see what happens while also hearing what Zola said happened. You experience the present and past with her.

For being a true story, this film heavily leans into fantasy.