I’m a sucker for high-concept science fiction. If you’ve got time travel, virtual reality, cloning and other advanced technologies at play, you automatically have my attention. If you throw in a goofy sense of humor and a super-compelling lead actor like, say, Sam Rockwell, well, then now we are cooking with gas.
“Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” is the latest from Gore Verbinski, a director known for taking big swings to great success (“Pirates of the Caribbean”) and colossal failure (“The Lone Ranger”), the latter of which sent him into a bit of career exile.
Verbinski is clearly still willing to let it all hang out, even if the stakes are a lot lower. The result is one of his best films to date, a gonzo romp that boldly laughs in the face of the apocalypse.
“Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” throws us right into the deep end where Rockwell walks into a crowded diner dressed like a homeless cyborg, claiming to be from the future and looking for volunteers to join him on a suicide mission to stop a powerful AI from destroying civilization.
If the future Rockwell is from is a wasteland, the near-future he arrives in is pretty close to dystopian. As Rockwell recruits his team from patrons at the diner, we learn about their world in flashbacks with high-school teachers Mark (Michael Pena) and Janet (Zazie Beetz), grieving mother Susan (Juno Temple) and Wi-Fi-allergic Ingrid (Haley Lu Richardson).
Each of flashback plays out like an episode of “Black Mirror” where social media leads to mind control, memories of deceased loved ones can be downloaded into clones and an addictive virtual reality world has people uploading their minds while leaving the real world far behind.
It’s bleak stuff, but fortunately Rockwell knows where all the laughs are, and Verbinski holds nothing back as he throws everything at the screen with surprising effectiveness.
While it probably requires repeat viewing to see if the complex machinery of the plot holds up to scrutiny, the film’s thesis statement of “maybe we should be a little more cautious and thoughtful about all this new technology we are adopting” lands with a live-wire intensity.
The randomness and tone of “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” will remind audiences of “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” which is a good comparison, even though it is a little darker and sloppier.
If you’re not afraid of a little weirdness, this movie is entertaining, hilarious and oddly insightful.
As we march blindly into an uncertain future, “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” reminds us to stay human and to do our best to take the time to stop and laugh at all the absurdity we’ve gotten ourselves into.
“Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” is rated R for pervasive language, violence, some grisly images and brief sexual content.
