ZOLA

Based on true events, Zola tells her account of a road trip to Florida gone wrong. The film opens with Zola, a waitress at a country food restaurant who happens to one day be the server for Stefani. Unable to place where she has seen and/or met Zola before, Stefani inquires if Zola's ever danced, which she confirms. They exchange numbers and after Zola dances at her other job, Stefani asks her is she wants to take a quick weekend trip to Florida to make some serious money. All about the hustle, Zola quickly agrees but finds out early in the trip she's been duped into going by Stefani and her pimp, who is only credited as X. At the mercy of X who drove her, Stefani, and Stefani's dimwitted boyfriend Derrek, she soon finds herself unable to escape until the trip is over, while at the same time, expected to engage in prostitution for X. Director Janicza Bravo does a wonderful job at building suspense, as for the entire trip the audience has a sense of dread as the story continues to unfold. Wonderful performances all around from the 4 main players. The film is based upon tweets Zola sent out after the ordeal and only a few scenes are from Stefani's point of view, as she's denied Zola's recounting of the events (otherwise, this is Zola's film and from her view point only). A weird 48 hours (but then again, it is Florida), and we'll never know for sure how much of this is true, but it does make for an entertaining film that exceeded my expectations for it going in. 6.5/10