Sorry, Haters

Featuring one of the best performances of Robin Wright Penn’s career (which is no small feat, given the sort of exemplary work she’s done in the past), Sorry, Haters tells the intriguing story of an accountant named Phoebe and her relationship with a Muslim taxi driver (played by Abdellatif Kechiche). While the film initially seems like its going to be a deceptively simple look at the tentative friendship between these two disparate characters, it becomes clear soon enough that writer/director Jeff Stanzler has something far more sinister up his sleeve. It takes an awfully long time for the viewer to come to that realization, though, thanks primarily to Wright Penn’s grounded, thoroughly convincing performance (the gritty, low-budget vibe doesn’t hurt, either). As a result, the film works as both an examination of post-9/11 relations between Muslims and everyone else, as well as a trippy, mess-with-your-head sort of thriller. And then there’s the conclusion, which is destined to leave audiences thinking and talking about it for hours after everything’s said and done.

*** out of ****