Playing like the kinkier granddaughter of Russ Meyers’ Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, Annapurna Sriram’s Fucktoys has an axe to grind, and then some. At its core, this is a critique of modern capitalism that feels increasingly relevant, arriving in a time when billionaires are forcing the middle and lower-middle class to go on a diet budget. Younger people have been squeezed, left behind, and fucked-over by a massive transfer of wealth and, in turn, some have viewed young generations as a commodity to project their fantasies. In essence, if you’re unlucky in this economy, you might find yourself becoming a fucktoy. Needless to say, this is a film that’s not safe for work or polite society.
Sriram plays AP, a dominatrix on call in a post-apocalyptic landscape that was never rebuilt after the last storm. She works out of abandoned houses with a band of punk rockers in places to crash, rage, and practice “art.” She’s not their ringleader, but another lost girl seeking to break the curse she’s just been informed of when rapper Big Freedia reads her tarot on a boat in the bayou.
Once she learns of the curse, she becomes hell-bent on breaking it via a ritual that will cost her $1,000 that she doesn’t have, setting off a chain reaction. Reconnecting with an old friend Danni (Sadie Scott) as they sit and pee on a mutual older client (Damian Young), the two become accomplices in AP’s twisted mission which leads them to arrogant hotshot TV star James Falcone (Brandon Flynn), who views what they do as a form of art like his watercolor paintings. It all goes according to plan until James asks Danni to sign a long NDA about their encounter. Soon, AP and Danni find themselves on the lam.
With a strong DIY aesthetic that embraces influences like John Waters, Gregg Araki, Anna Biller, and a certain slice of ’70s grindhouse movies, Sriram’s debut is a gleefully trashy and non-judgemental celebration of a broad range of lifestyles––to put it kindly. Yet a kind of sweet sympathy is found in Danni and AP as they outrun their pasts and, along the way, check in with friends, clients, and AP’s mother, a waitress in a donut shop.
Even at 100 minutes, the adventure starts to overstay its welcome, trying to jam too much plot and atmosphere into a narrative that really should zip along at a breakneck pace. The film is held together by Sriram and Scott, the latter delivering a complex performance that’s both street-smart and vulnerable. Despite any misgivings, Fucktoys is an impressive debut that pays homage to its grindhouse roots with a contemporary commentary that feels like it has arrived just in time to predict what the next few years will bring.
Fucktoys premiered at SXSW 2025.