Not Okay: An Entertaining Satire On Online Culture

Not Okay, an entertaining take on internet culture.

In a world where everything and everyone is online, do we really need another film that reminds us about the good and especially the bad of social media? Well, when a movie is this entertaining you definitely do.

Not Okay is a fresh take on online culture, particularly influencer culture, and with its unique storyline we are introduced to a whole new world behind the screen where the rules dont apply, but that doesnt mean, there arent consequences. Written and directed by Quinn Shephard, Not Okay is a satirical, dramatic comedy rooted in influencer culture, social media and the entire modern world of needing to be popular and be seen.

Searchlight Pictures

The story follows so called "influencer" Danni Sanders (Zoey Deutch), who is desperate for friends and fame, she fakes a trip to Paris to gain followers and to impress the man of her dreams, Colin (Dylan O'Brien), but when a terrorist attack occurs and everyone mistakenly assumes that Danni is one of the survivors, she finds herself caught up in a dangerous lie. When she continues to pose as one of the survivors of the attack she soon learns that online notoriety comes with a terrible price. The Film also stars Mia Isaac as Rowan, Embeth Davidtz as Judith, Karan Soni as Kevin, Brennan Brown as Harold and Nadia Alexander as Harper.

Watch the trailer here

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The film perfectly captures the highs and lows of influencer culture in a truly entertaining and unique way. While also incorporating some heavy duty material, and somehow making the story humorous. Should I laugh or should I not? The way the story unfolds is quite interesting really, the story is told in different parts as if it were one of Dannis story's and we see the sudden overnight rise to fame of "an influencer" under false pretenses, and the hard social downfall of a liar, it's a real bold take at how some of our generations influencers come to be and how fame can be gone in seconds.

Quinn Shephard has written the film well, including interesting but unlikable characters, a well rounded plot that ties in to the sneak peak at the beginning, an inspirational montage as well as some gritty real life topics, all leading to and an intense and fitting ending. I also have to mention the editiing in this film (not just from Danni Sanders) is spot on, you'll see why I mention that. Although do not go into this film expecting happily ever afters, cause that's something you wont see.

Zoey Deutch plays the unlikable female protagonist Danni Sanders who you really do not want to root for, she is somewhat of a complex character, a struggling writer and fame-chaser who finds herself in a sticky situation, and Zoey perfectly balances the comedy and the drama of the film, while also keeping in mind the social satire of the story. This film is a great example of her acting capabilities and she has done a great job with this character.

Searchlight Pictures

“Zoey was always my first choice for Danni, because she is one of those actresses who can play a character who is absolutely satirical and does very questionable things and yet still feels like a real, relatable person, Not Okay’ is a provocative, boundary-pushing film that I think scared a lot of people in the industry, but Zoey was super down for the challenge of playing this character and was just fearless about it.” - Quinn Shephard

Dylan's transformation into Colin almost broke the internet when fans saw it for the first time on TikTok. Full bleached blonde hair and tattoos covering his sleeves and neck, with his vape always nearby. Dylan Got to have a say in how he wanted to look and he was happy to go "full on" for the film. Speaking on his performance, Dylan absolutely nailed it as Colin, the status-obsessed, follower chasing influencer who befriends Danni, but sadly turns out to be a bit of an asshole, still, an absolute thirst-trap. This was a character unlike any other we've seen Dylan portray, a real modern day, millenial type, and he did a terrific job of bringing Colin's signature personality and his chill idgaf attitude to the film.

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"From the first conversation with Quinn early on, I was just like, 'I want to go full on, just like full tats, bleach the hair,' and she was completely game for all of that, I definitely had this incredible team of people that assembled it entirely for me. I loved it. I love doing it. It was so much fun. It was such a blast. When it was over, it all happened so fast I wish I could go back and do it better." - Dylan O'Brien

Another performance that really stood out, was that of Mia Isaac who plays Rowan. An activist who survived a school shooting and is now an advocate for gun violence, Danni befriends her, but down the line, things end up getting complicated to say the least. From the moment we first see her giving a speech on gun violence in the movie, I could see the amount of talent Mia Isaac has, and for a second you forget she's a fictional character. Rowan really stands out in the film. Such a great performance from an 18 year old.

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"What I really love about Rowan is that for the first time we can focus on the survivors of shootings. I don’t think that’s something people talk about often. Rowan is an activist and people use her as a political figure, but she’s been through real trauma. You can see the effect that it has on her mental health. Hopefully Rowan’s character can bring that to light because it’s a real problem." - Mia Isaac

Not Okay is all in all a pretty good, one of a kind, well rounded, film, with a very bold story, and an important message, it's one of those films that is willing to say the things we need to hear. Like, "If you're not okay, that's okay."

Not Okay is streaming on Hulu, Disney+ and fans in Latin America can check it out on Star+.