Written by: Emma Seligman & Rachel Sennott
Starring: Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Ruby Cruz, Havana Rose Liu, Kaia Gerber, Nicholas Galitzine
Rating: [4.5/5]
Ruses in order to get the attention and attraction of those they like has existed as a plot to many teen films where guys will pretty much do anything in order to impress a girl. Some start a band, play sports, and even build elaborate misdirections. Bottoms utilizes this very same dynamic but shifts the perspective of girls trying to do this for the girls they have crushes on. What starts as something simple then quickly morphs into something much bigger, and the comedy this film employs does not relent for even one minute.
At the overly animated Rockbridge Falls High School, Josie (Ayo Edebiri) and PJ (Rachel Sennott) have crushes on two of the popular girls in school. After getting into an encounter, they try to cover up what occurred by stating they are starting a girl’s fight club to promote self-defense. Once they start things up, they realize the girls they have a crush on both have joined.
One of the many positives that has come from more diverse voices within the film space is a recontextualization of the famous tropes within a genre through the perspective of other types of individuals. In these types of stories we typically see it told through the lens of two unpopular dudes. With Bottoms we see this transpire with two lesbian girls and how they experience the high school hierarchy and their pursuit of the popular girls. We get many of the trademarks but with the very distinct sprinkle of this high school not existing on planet Earth.
Well, it does but the heightened level of drama and how all of these characters act adds just the right amount of ridiculousness to establish this as a wacky high school. Some elements still certainly ring true including the blatant favoritism towards the football players and downplaying the contribution of any other organized group but it tips the scale when we have the aforementioned football players perpetually in their pads. This tone remains throughout this film and continues to build this hilarious environment that becomes a feeding ground for these actors to completely show out with their immense talents.
At the center of this movie we have PJ and Josie with a strong friendship dynamic. They operate as the losers who wish they could grab the attention of Isabel (Havana Rose Liu) and Hazel (Ruby Cruz). PJ continuously runs with these ideas to get the attention of girls, while Josie has much more of a shyer personality. They’re the type of high schoolers who honestly just want the experience to end, hoping that college will provide something new and refreshing for them. They inadvertently get in this situation in a moment of valor with Isabel that puts them directly in the eye line of Jeff (Nicholas Galitzine).
As they establish this fight club out of a whim of cover, they inadvertently build something that matters plenty to their fellow high school girls and it continues to grow pretty much out of their control This element lines up with other teen comedies of this ilk where their deception drives them closer to their crushes but it sets up the inevitability of their reveal and the drama that will come of it down the line. Within those moments of the fight club we get to see where the dynamics display themselves and each of these girls display exactly why they want to partake in the club. One girl aptly points out that she can reverse stalk her stalker, and another states she can kill her stepdad. Instances we can laugh at because of their extremities involved but when digging into the root of those issues, it’s these girls fighting against what can be perceived as potential sexual violence against them. The film puts it out there for us to all decipher, which makes those circumstances sound a bit less tragic but it describes what makes the idea of self-defense so vital for girls of any age.
With this group essentially serving as a self-defense club, but always referred to as a fight club, this film makes it quite clear the little inspirations it takes from the famous 1999 film, Fight Club. Even when we think we’ve reached the finality of the references, it just keeps on going, especially when things get more bombastic, if you know what I mean. The narrative toes the line between the self-defense and the fight element of their club very well to fit the purpose of what PJ and Josie can get out of it.
Bottoms further cements Emma Seligman as quite the new voice in the film world. In her debut, her and Rachel Sennott took us through a stressful ride in Shiva Baby and their collaboration once again demonstrated they have upped their game here. The outrageous jokes and comedy on display just hits peak after peak, and the way she frames it all exhibits her incredible directorial style in emphatically capturing moments of high emotion. This pairing of her and Rachel Sennott should just continue to roll out these bangers as they have yet to disappoint and something tells me they will not start any time now.
Coming together with its wonderful cast of fun actors delivering on everything one could want from a raunchy high school comedy, Bottoms delivers so many hilarious moments and has a sweet friendship right at the center. Everyone here came to play in taking an existing mold and completely making something new out of it with the right mixture of ridiculousness and reality to make this resonate with those who watch it.
Films with Josh 
