The BFI London Film Festival is off to an amazing start this year with the breadth of films on offer being nothing short of spectacular. One of the must-see films on my list this year is definitely Ingrid Goes West. With teaser trailers already screening, the film definitely piqued my interest and can quite easily be described as the comedic version of Single White Female for the social media age.

What’s it all about? Well, it’s about Ingrid. She’s a little fucked-up and like most millennials, totally addicted to her phone. Ingrid yearns to be friends in real life with some of her favorite Instagram obsessions. The only problem here though is that Ingrid tends to get a little cray-cray in the process and crosses more than a few moral boundaries which land her in the looney bin. After getting out and her ill mother dying, a giant wad of cash lands in her hands and then BOOM – she’s immediately off to Venice, California to become BFFs with ultimate boho-chic Instagram celebrity Taylor, played by Elizabeth Olsen of Avengers Scarlet Witch fame.

Ingrid isn’t a psychopath, she just wants to be Taylor’s BFF. #justgoseethismovie

What happens along the way is downright hysterical. After staging a doggy rescue as an initial introduction into the fabulous life of Taylor, we see poor Ingrid wield her obsession into some crazy situations that will make you say to yourself, “Damn, thank God I was never that crazy!”. What’s really fun about this film is that it touches upon every single insecurity we all have as human beings when it comes to communicating with people we admire/love/obsess over online. There are laugh out loud moments in Ingrid Goes West that seem all too real because basically, we’ve all been there.

Casting in this film is superb too. Aubrey Plaza gives a stellar performance as Ingrid striking the perfect balance of “holding it all together” but secretly “borderline psychopath” so well that you end up falling in love with her character, despite her rather long list of flaws. If you loved O’Shea Jackson Jr. in his serious portrayal of his famous dad Ice Cube in Straight Outta Compton, you’ll love his comedic turn as the Batman-obsessed Dan Pinto here. Wyatt Russell (son of Goldie and Kurt) continues to charm, off the back of his great casting in Black Mirror and Everybody Wants Some! Even douchebag beefcake Nicky (Taylor’s brother) played by Billy Magnussen adds to the well-cast romp which will have you laughing secretly in your head for days after seeing this film.

As part of the Laugh portion of films at BFI London Film Festival this year, you’ll want to make sure you add this to your must-see list of films. If for anything, Ingrid Goes West laughs at itself too and you too will roll your eyes at how ridiculous LA life can be sometimes – down to the overpriced boutiques, avocado on toast craze and the millennial insecurities that plague a society obsessed with social media.

Ingrid Goes West hits theatres on November 17th.

Ingrid Goes West
Impressive lead actressImpressive supporting castFunny, too-real
A bit plasticRelies on comedy
4.6Aubrey Plaza shines
Storytelling
Acting
Memorability/originality
Direction/editing
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