Immersion, Intimacy, and Isolation

Subversion of Space in Sorry to Bother You (2018)

Abstract

Sorry to Bother You (2018) emerged among a rising trend of Afrosurrealism in American film and television. Compared to surrealism, which distorts reality through absurdity, Afrosurrealism signifies the creation of a reality evocative of our own, acting as a looking glass to illustrate the horrors of an American reality. Through frames within frames and character proxemics, director Boots Riley creates a sense of immersion, intimacy, and isolation to illustrate a uniquely American cinematic reality. Riley immerses the viewer in the surreal reality of Cassius Green (Lakeith Stanfield) to critique the Afrosurreal capitalism found in the film. Sorry to Bother You follows Cassius’ rise through the ranks of RegalView, a telemarketing agency that essentially sells slave labor. To become a power caller, Cassius adopts a white voice so that his white customers will feel more comfortable with him, and it is not just the call recipient who becomes more comfortable with the intimacy of the call. The more confident Cassius becomes in his white voice, the more he allows himself to become intimate with the call recipient, as illustrated by the proximity of the characters on screen. Coincidentally, the immersion into the call and intimacy with the white customer create trouble for Cassius at home, as he increasingly isolates himself from his class-conscious girlfriend, Detroit (Tessa Thompson).