I’m telling you right now that whatever raves Emma Seligman’s “Bottoms” got from SXSW should be taken with a major grain of salt.
Yes, it has a 79 on Metacritic and 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, but look for those ratings to go drastically down in the coming weeks.
Based on what I’ve heard, the film has been largely overpraised since its premier debut in late March. It happens every year, a SXSW title gets raved to no ends by the SXSW “bubble” and then, when it is finally unveiled to a mass audience, it bombs.
As seen via the newly released trailer for “Bottoms,” the film looks like a mess. And, it’s a real shame considering it was directed by the very talented Emma Seligman.
Here’s what a friend who went to SXSW wrote:
It’s just in a similar tone to “Not Another Teen Movie”, with Superbad/Booksmart-like leads, but they’re not as likable. The comedic set pieces and the general humor are no different than any comedy you or I have seen the last three decades, but it's far less clever, engaging or consistently funny. I liked how casually and comfortably queer it was. But there’s definitely a rooting factor hanging over it being a success as well as SXSW was riding high over it being a hometown hero/Shiva Baby’s success there. It's just not very broad or marketable, and the reviews will worsen.
Seligman wrote and directed “Shiva Baby,” which also starred Rachel Sennott. That film gave the impression that she might turn out to be an up-and-coming director to watch out for. She could still break big, but I highly doubt it’ll happen with this latest film.
“Bottoms” follows the story of two queer teens who keep being bullied by the jocks at their high school. In an attempt to get back at them, the girls form a fight club in their school and train a group of outcasts for the purpose of self-defense.
The trailer really speaks for itself.
The comedy stars Rachel Sennott, Ayo Edebiri, Havana Rose Liu, Kaia Gerber, Nicholas Galitzine, Dagmara Dominczyk, and Marshawn Lynch. “Bottoms” will be released in theaters on August 25.