Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die marks what will hopefully be a new beginning in Gore Verbinski’s career with an anti-AI odyssey.
Director Gore Verbinski and writer/ executive producer Matthew Robinson team up to hold a mirror to the world with Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die. Technology—such as the very laptop being used to write this review—has brought us closer, but also isolated us into our own pocket universe. Everyone has their version of reality based on algorithms that don’t reflect truth, just more of what people want to hear. Artificial intelligence (AI) isn’t being used to find the cure for cancer or to make the planet a better, more livable place. Instead, it is being used to replace hard workers with automation, create digital art with nothing to say, and make us way less intelligent and more lackadaisical. Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die carries a stellar premise with a phenomenal lead performance from Sam Rockwell (The Bad Guys 2), even if its plotting muddies its messaging.
Synopsis
A man from the future, who could easily be mistaken for a homeless individual wearing a retro plastic trenchcoat, arrives at a Norms diner in Los Angeles. Here, he must recruit the precise combination of disgruntled patrons to join him on a one-night quest to save the world from the terminal threat of a rogue artificial intelligence.
Not the Same Industry Since Verbinski’s Last
Whether intentional or not, I could not help but form a connection between Rockwell’s character and Verbinski. After experiencing life in an AI post-apocalypse, Rockwell is forced to travel back in time and attempt to save humanity from their destructive social behaviors. The film industry has changed so much, arguably for the worse, since Verbinski’s last project, A Cure for Wellness. Cinematic universes and sequels are king, theatrical windows are ever in danger, algorithms dictate what the streamers green-light, and AI is being embraced by studios as a way to lay off people and save money. Verbinski arrives not at a diner, but at a point in the industry’s history where we could still turn back and preserve the humanity in the art we consume.
Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die shares many similarities with the filmmaker’s past work. The film is overstuffed and perhaps a little too ambitious for its own good. It has plenty to say about the current state of technology. With that said, screenwriter Robinson doesn’t give each theme enough room to breathe. The themes seldom say anything beyond what’s on the surface. Although these are true, the movie manages to rise above its shortcomings.
Unlikely Heroes Against AI
The film opens with an extensive monologue from Rockwell. As he does this, he breaks into the diner and starts screaming like a loony person about the end of times. This monologue would be considered one of cinema’s great sins, telling rather than showing. Because of Rockwell’s delivery and the energy he brings to the role, though, his dialogue rarely ever feels like exposition. For me, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die never recaptures the essence of its opening sequence. Yet, once our roster of characters leaves the diner, it’s where Verbinski’s “weird” sensitivities come out.
Making Light of a Sensitive Subject Matter
The story is structured in a way that there will be an occasional flashback explaining the backstories of our ensemble. Besides a great gag involving a prop that looks like one of the laser guns from Mars Attacks!, Michael Peña (Ant-Man) and Zazie Beetz’s (Deadpool 2, Joker) subplot as high school teachers is rather unmemorable. What’s depicted here is your typical “kids these days are too attached to their phones” sort of commentary. No new or interesting spins are made with this. However, Verbinski makes up for it with the second highlight of the film, Juno Temple’s (Ted Lasso) chapter.
One of Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die’s many thematic throughlines concerns the issue of tech companies selling out children’s future for profit. A way in which this is explored is through the extremely sensitive topic of school shootings in America. Temple’s character is forced to face this level of grief after such an event. I won’t go into full detail because this deserves to be experienced firsthand. With that in mind, from the bizarre normalization of seeing kids’ lives being cut short to the chilling yet darkly humorous manner in which companies take advantage of these tragedies, Verbinski pulls off the impossible: satirizing an unfortunately American thing. The biggest cries of laughter at The Egyptian Theatre in LA came from this particular chapter.
A Key Character
Finally, we have Haley Lu Richardson’s (Split, After Yang, The White Lotus Season 2) key role as Ingrid. When we first meet her, she’s soaking wet, wearing a princess dress. She constantly puts herself in harm’s way. This establishes the deep sadness within her eyes and her desire to end her suffering. As the group’s adventure continues, Ingrid is revealed to be allergic to electronic devices and wifi. That’s the kind of predicament you’d find in a Verbinski production. Richardson doesn’t get any energetic moments like Rockwell or emotionally challenging scenes to show off her range as Temple. Rather, she certainly leaves her footprint, unlike some of her castmates. Her arc is predictable and even uninspired, but it mostly works due to Richardson’s charisma.
Visually Competent Amidst Low Budget
If Verbinski’s filmography is known for anything, then it is the visual flair each of his projects has. The Ring isn’t only one of the best American remakes ever produced. It’s a stunning piece of contemporary horror history with the genre’s most memorable imagery. His Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy launched Disney’s only successful ride-turned film franchise. It rejuvenated the adventure genre in the 2000s, the way Indiana Jones did in the 80s and The Mummy did in the 90s.
As if that weren’t enough, those movies were made at a time when—between The Lord of the Rings, The Matrix, and the Star Wars prequels—great technological advancements in the visual effects (VFX) world were happening. To this day, Davy Jones’ crew is a referenced quality when talking about computer-generated imagery (CGI) characters. Thus, it shouldn’t be a surprise that a Gore Verbinski production comes with certain expectations. Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die looks a bit cheap in comparison to the director’s previous work. Still, I’ll give it a pass since I cannot imagine this having much money behind it. At least not as big a budget as a Pirates film.
What Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die might lack in high fidelity is made up for in creativity. Most blockbusters these days feel as if their VFX shots are more of an afterthought than something that was planned ahead of filming. Not with Gore Verbinski’s team. There are some imaginative creature and set designs as we head into the movie’s climax. They’re odd in a “how do you even think of this?” kind of sense.
Final Thoughts on Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die
As we near Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die’s final moments, there is a sudden shift that almost ruins any emotional momentum the film was building, especially with Richardson’s Ingrid. The manner in which the storytelling wraps up is not necessarily satisfying. On the contrary, it does have a “gotcha” troll energy. I can’t help but respect that, even if it doesn’t completely land. Personally, I am just happy to see a filmmaker of Verbinski’s caliber making movies again. It is nowhere near his best. Regardless, it’s a fun premise with a fun cast, executed in such an outlandish fashion.
Gore Verbinski and Matthew Robinson’s Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die is set to release on January 30th, 2026!
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