I Love Boosters is Boots Riley’s second directorial following the absurdist 2018 film Sorry to Bother You. I Love Boosters follows an all-star cast as they embark on a heist centered on the fashion world. In Riley’s signature absurdist reality, I Love Boosters offers a colorful exploration of what a Marxist should strive to look like. 

Fashion Forward

I Love Boosters details the story of three friends, Corvette, Mariah, and Sade, who call themselves the Velvet Gang. The Velvet Gang steals high-end fashion from Metro Designer Chains in the San Francisco Bay Area at discount prices. Christie Smith is a designer who owns the Metro Chains and is notorious for showcasing fashion as a transformative experience. While in the media, fueling how experiential fashion is, she challenges the Velvet Gang as she is on to its plans to stay on top. 

With I Love Boosters being an all-star cast, the trio that is the Velvet Gang is where the film centers itself. Corvette specifically wants to be a designer and admires Smith’s work, though she knows Smith’s disdain for her is immense. Mariah is a revolutionary activist who wants to create an initiative called “Fashion Forward Filanthropy.” In an effort to do so, she remains the voice of reason. Sade is a mother who ultimately wants the best for her kids and will stop at nothing to make that happen. As ambitious as the trio is, there are other additions who tag along. One being Jianhu, who has an abrupt entrance into the film’s narrative, and Violeta, a coworker of the gang at the Metro designer stores, where they shoplift. With the addition of Jianhu and Violeta, the Velvet Gang is firing on all cylinders in order to redefine the fashion industry in a hyper-capitalistic society. 

A Fashionable Cast

Boots Riley has always been a master at curating an elevated all-star cast. I Love Boosters: Riley’s diverse ensemble reflects myriad societal norms rooted in realism. The realism is showcased through acts of Marxism, anti-capitalism, and capitalist notions that seep into the film’s overarching theme. At Riley’s core, he is a revolutionary activist, and his vision with I Love Boosters is clear, though extremist, and he remains ten toes down on his morals.

As a trio, Keke Palmer, Tatlour Paige, and Naomi Ackie command the screen as the Velvet Gang. The dynamic ideas among the three offer an amazing perspective on how fashion is a spectrum, not just a high-end luxury. Palmer’s Corvette is the best example of this, as she is an aspiring fashion designer who admires Smith’s work, though her vision isn’t on display. As for Paige’s Mariah, she is a force multiplier in making fashion accessible to everyone, no matter their socioeconomic background, while carrying out the shoplifting heist so effectively. Ackie’s Sade is in full survival mode at all times, doing what she thinks is best for the future, even outside of fashion. The Velvet Gang, as a movement, offers a wide array of spectacle and hope to those who strive to succeed and make an impact.

The supporting cast remains just as invigorating as the three leads. Demi Moore’s Christie Smith is the film’s biggest symbol of capitalism, as she exploits and takes from those she knows can’t compete with her because of a lack of resources. It could even be inferred that Smith values only the ideas of those who are at the bottom of the totem pole because their potential is severely untapped. With this devious edge, Moore makes her mark as a billionaire fashionista who is trying to end the Velvet Gang.