OVERVIEW
A sci-fi action comedy that marks Gore Verbinski’s return (the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, Rango), starring Sam Rockwell as a wacky “man from the future” who storms into a diner to warn everyone that AI has taken over, and that he needs to form a group to stop it. He says he has tried this before and failed multiple times. Still, something about this particular attempt feels different…
BACKGROUND
This is Verbinski’s first feature in 9 years, since A Cure for Wellness. He used to be one of the few blockbuster directors with real texture and personality, but the one-two punch of The Lone Ranger and A Cure for Wellness made risk-averse studios step back. Around the same time, the business moved even harder toward safer IP, a flatter house style, and endless legacy sequels. An original concept with set pieces, tonal chaos, and a clear target in modern tech culture feels like the right comeback for him.
EXECUTION
The promise was too good to be true. There are definitely moments in Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die where Verbinski reminds you of his hand and talent, dropping in a well-orchestrated chase sequence, original ideas, or a visual flourishes that feel like a breath of fresh air or nostalgic reminders. But those flashes are trapped in a problematic, unfocused script that, like A Cure for Wellness, reaches for too much at once and does not add up to much.
It opens with a fantastic diner sequence led by Sam Rockwell at his most Rockwell-y role yet. Verbinski quickly waves at the audience to remind them he is there, with intentional color, fun cuts, and creative camera movement. Intentional cinematography should be the norm, but it has been replaced by green screens and ugly gray slop. It is fun, clever, and wacky, in the right amount.
After Rockwell preaches to a largely unbothered audience about the world ending, while they keep looking at their screens and then back at the wildly dressed guy, he gathers his set of misfits, and the movie starts explaining how each one ended up there.
From there, the structure feels like an entire season of Black Mirror compressed into one film, with each character getting a premise that could power a full episode. One of them, in fact, already has.
The chapters vary in quality, and they likely would have landed more sharply if the film had arrived 10 years ago, before the series covered so much of this territory. The movie modernizes the surface, amping up the screens and throwing in points about AI and TikTok, but the ideas rarely land as intentionally or as smartly as they want. It can all be summarized as the director saying “technology bad.”
As entertainment, it holds attention for a while, especially because each chapter is self-contained, setting up a mystery and then delivering a quick payoff. Beyond Verbinski’s craft, with cinematography and Geoff Zanelli’s creative score, the cast is game and keeps things engaging.
The most interesting thread is Haley Lu Richardson as a young woman with an allergy to technology. She brings real honesty to the arc and makes a sudden shift with her love interest feel heartbreaking, even when the script simplifies it. You end up caring about her character, and as she becomes more central to the plot, she keeps you invested, even as the third act grows bigger and the noise starts to wear out its welcome. When it ends after a loud but boring climax and an admittedly good twist, you do not leave wanting more of this Gore Verbinski, but the one who opened the film.
AFTERTASTE
The movie turns out to be an uneven experience. There are constant flashes of a director capable of making a great film, effective jokes, and good performances, which are enough to hold your attention. But they are pulled down by a script that strains too hard, offering shallow arguments about modern technology without leaving you with anything to truly chew on. A satire without the bite or clarity to make it memorable.