Review of Ingrid Goes West (2017) by Brandon O — 03 Apr 2018

Ingrid Goes West is a pretty neat, new indie film from director Matt Spicer. Beautifully shot and carefully directed with shining results! I found it quite entertaining and very funny at times. It does maintain a rather somber tone throughout the course of the movie due to the nature of the subject matter.

Aubrey Plaza is a very convincing stalker that is desperate for the attention of her obsession, the wildly charming Elizabeth Olsen. Ingrid Goes West quickly establishes that as you laugh at the ridiculous lengths Plaza's character is willing to go for recognition, it's also a profoundly sad relationship. She is clearly coping poorly with her mother's death and craves the attentions and affections of another person. Plaza's Ingrid develops a fake persona just like Olsen's stereotypical LA phony girl. They parallel each other with their insincere tastes and attempts at relevancy. It's all a disingenuous facade. Ingrid Goes West is quite the social commentary movie.

Plaza plays an emotional manipulator that is feigning passion by copying celebrities instead of actually having interests like O'Shea Jackson Jr.'s hilarious landlord character who deeply loves Batman. His obsession is healthy as it makes him a better, kinder man. He is genuine in his passions and love and thus it is requited through Plaza's Ingrid. He has really come into his own as an actor. He's my favorite highlight in Ingrid Goes West.

Additionally, Ingrid Goes West delivers biting social critiques on cruel Hollywood parties and cliques along with their complete lack of real friendships. Couples should be supportive and tell the truth unlike the horribly unlikable frauds that Olsen's family and circle embody in Ingrid Goes West. You realize that at least Ingrid is honest and tells the truth while the others continue to live a lie. Her disinterest transforms into an appreciation for real love and compassion.

Ingrid Goes West is a deeply poignant statement on our times wherein we require confirmation of existence from others online through social media like Instagram. Ingrid pulls off a final stunt that does not have the best message of doing extreme cries for help for followers, but the ending works as she can finally let go of her mother's death and old obsessions. By the end, she is merely stuck with her phone dependency, which is a better alternative to her stalker behavior from earlier I suppose.

We project ourselves at our very best online posting the most thoughtful insights, inspiring quotes, and our most flattering pictures. Ingrid Goes West asks us to reflect on how much information should we put on social media and how much of it is fake. It's a very effective argument on life's real experiences against virtual recognition. The glamour is all pretend. Just be yourself.

In conclusion, Ingrid Goes West proves that art does have value in that it can teach of what we do not know and reflect our flaws in a humorous way. Ingrid Goes West is a raunchy romp, ridiculous ride, and a moving analysis of our social media obsession. Feel free to post about it online, all irony aside. It's worth a watch!