Boots Riley returns with a bold, chaotic, and brilliant heist film, I Love Boosters. Keke Palmer shines as a shoplifter taking on corporate greed.
I Love Boosters is Boots Riley at his most unrestrained, and quite frankly, I loved every second of it. If Sorry to Bother You walked so this film could run, then I Love Boosters is sprinting at full speed toward the nearest high-end boutique. The film follows a crew of professional shoplifters – “boosters” – who decide to set their sights on Christie Smith, a cutthroat fashion mogul. It’s framed as a heist, but it is so much more than that. It is a wild, bold, stylistic film that dives into some serious social commentary – something that Boots Riley is very, very good at.
At the center of all this is Keke Palmer and she was the absolute right casting choice. Coming off her work in The ‘Burbs, Keke brings a specific kind of vulnerability to the role of a down-on-her-luck aspiring designer. She someone who just wants to catch a break in a system designed to break her. Because she’s so charismatic, it’s incredibly easy for the audience to fall in love with her and root for her success, even when things get morally gray.
Her chemistry with Naomi Ackie, who plays Sadie, is the emotional anchor of the film. Their relationship is extremely relatable and the most real aspect of I Love Boosters. It’s that ride or die friendship where you spend half the time bickering and the other half planning a revolution. Sadie is the one who puts her in her place when she needs it, and that dynamic makes the stakes feel personal rather than just political.
On the other side of things is Demi Moore as Christie Smith. Moore is brilliant, as always, portraying a designer who views everything – and everyone as mere art. To Christie, humans don’t have feelings; they are just textiles to be draped and discarded. She embodies the greed is good corporate ethos but adds a layer of detached, artistic pretension that makes her a fascinating villain.
While Poppy Lui, Will Poulter, Taylour Paige, Eiza González, and Don Cheadle are phenomenal. It is difficult to talk about their roles in detail without spoiling something. Just know that every cog in this wheel has its role to play, and does so brilliantly. They bring humor, heart, and most importantly, an exaggerated reality, to the film.
In true Boots Riley fashion, the movie has a lot to say, and it doesn’t whisper its message. It explores heavy themes of workers’ rights and the insatiable greed of big corporations that prioritize profit over people. What I found most intriguing was how the film expands its lens beyond the U.S., highlighting the overseas workers who manufacture our luxury goods. It’s a sobering reminder that while we obsess over the brand, the people making the products are being worked literally to death, with no one but their families left to care.
Boots Riley is known for stepping way over the line, injecting bizarre and twisted elements into his narratives that shouldn’t work on paper, but work perfectly on screen. This movie is a bit all over the place at times, but in the best way possible. It’s frantic, colorful, and intentionally jarring.
While LaKeith Stanfield doesn’t have a massive role, his presence is felt; he provides some much-needed comedic relief in a story that occasionally dives into very dark territory. And the dialogue? Get ready. There are so many quotable lines that I won’t spoil here, but I guarantee they’ll be all over social media week of release.
I Love Boosters is a chaotic, righteous, and visually stunning piece of cinema. It’s a middle finger to the establishment – if you aren’t cheering by the end, you just might be on the wrong side of things.
All that to say, this is sure to be a polorizing experience. If you have not liked Boots RIley’s previous works, or are not a fan of movies that are willing to say something loud and proud (with a dash of bizarre) this is not for you.
About I Love Boosters
A crew of professional shoplifters take aim at a cutthroat fashion maven. It’s like community service.
I Love Boosters played at SXSW 2026.
