Drive-Away Dolls (2024) (1 Viewer)

[Jake Lipson]

Drive-Away Dolls was actually originally scheduled for theatrical release last September, which would have put it out around the same time as Bottoms. (I saw Bottoms on Labor Day last year.) Focus decided to push Drive-Away Dolls to February because of the SAG-AFTRA strike. Then they put it out with very little promotion in February. Honestly, I don't know if it could have done any worse in September than it did in February.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Drive-Away Dolls was actually originally scheduled for theatrical release last September, which would have put it out around the same time as Bottoms. (I saw Bottoms on Labor Day last year.) Focus decided to push Drive-Away Dolls to February because of the SAG-AFTRA strike. Then they put it out with very little promotion in February. Honestly, I don't know if it could have done any worse in September than it did in February.

I think the issue was that there was no hook to pull in an audience outside of the fact that Ethan was directing. It did have Pedro Pascal and Matt Damon but their roles are tiny. If people showed up to see them, well, they were not going to be happy. Pascal is pretty much blink and you'll miss him, and Damon is not onscreen much longer and his part really did not require a name actor. The two women that headline the film are not a box office draw. Then there was the idea that the two main characters are lesbians, which probably turns away a lot of middle America, plus initial reviews were not great, promotion was poor, the film had little chance to succeed.

Honestly, as to the lesbian aspect of the film, it does not much matter, the formula in play is road trip buddy film and is more that than about being a lesbian. In this case it just so happens that the two main characters are lesbians. The thing that stands out though is that they are oddballs in an amusing story. So, the characters really did not have to be lesbians that was just the spark for the idea. Meaning you don't have to be a lesbian to enjoy the story or identify with the characters.

Bottoms does the same thing, it is a buddy teen sex comedy that just happens to feature two lesbian teens as the main characters. It's about telling a funny story more than delving into to lesbian issues. The characters and situations are funny and it is written so anybody can identify and laugh at it. Bottoms tries to be more offensive in every way it can, which adds to the humor.