Starring: Jason Momoa, Suki Waterhouse, Keanu Reeves, Giovanni Ribisi
Directed by: Ana Lily Amirpour
Genre: Dystopian | Sci-Fi | Thriller
Studio: Netflix | Neon
Original Release: 2016
🏜️ “In a world that doesn’t want you, survival is everything.”
The Bad Batch is a provocative, visually arresting dystopian thriller set in a desolate stretch of Texas that the U.S. government has abandoned—a lawless desert where society’s undesirables are cast away to fend for themselves. It’s a place where rules don’t exist, and survival means making unimaginable choices.
🔪 PLOT SYNOPSIS
When Arlen (played by Suki Waterhouse) is exiled to the Texas wastelands as part of “the bad batch”—a classification of people deemed unfit for civilization—she is quickly captured by a savage gang of cannibals led by the menacing and tattooed Miami Man (Jason Momoa).
Mutilated and left for dead, Arlen escapes and stumbles into a bizarre desert settlement run by a cult-like figure known only as The Dream (Keanu Reeves), who offers her food, drugs, and a new identity in exchange for loyalty. But when Arlen becomes emotionally involved with Miami Man’s young daughter, she is forced to confront her own morality and the monstrous choices both men have made.
As Arlen navigates between brutality and twisted visions of utopia, The Bad Batch unravels as a meditation on self-determination, punishment, and the strange definition of humanity in a broken world.
🧠 WHAT MAKES IT UNIQUE
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Striking Visuals: Amirpour paints a hallucinogenic, dreamlike post-apocalyptic setting that’s equal parts Mad Max and art-house cinema.
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Minimal Dialogue, Maximum Impact: This is not a dialogue-heavy film—meaning every line and scene is loaded with visual storytelling and subtext.
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Unexpected Casting: Jason Momoa plays against type as a brutal, yet layered anti-hero. Keanu Reeves offers a rare turn as a manipulative cult leader, while Suki Waterhouse holds the screen with her silent strength.
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Genre-Bending: Equal parts sci-fi, horror, and philosophical allegory—this isn’t your typical dystopian flick.
🔥 CRITICAL RESPONSE
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Nominated for the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival
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Described by critics as “hypnotically brutal” and “a Mad Max-style fever dream with a moral center”
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Divisive but memorable, especially among fans of edgy, avant-garde cinema
💬 TAGLINE
“Love, cannibalism, and the American dream… in the wasteland.”
