| Spin Me Round | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Release poster | |
| Directed by | Jeff Baena |
| Written by |
|
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Sean Mcelwee |
| Edited by | Ryan Brown |
| Music by | Pino Donaggio |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 104 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Spin Me Round is a 2022 Americandark comedy film[1][2] co-written byJeff Baena andAlison Brie and directed by Baena, the final film he directed before his death in 2025. It premiered at the2022 South by Southwest festival on March 12, 2022. It was released on August 19, 2022, byIFC Films in theaters and byAMC+ onvideo on demand.
Amber is a dissatisfied manager at Tuscan Grove, anItalianchain restaurant inBakersfield, California. After being recommended by her boss, Amber receives an all-expenses-paid trip to Italy to participate in Tuscan Grove's management program, and meet the CEO, Nick Martucci. Her friend Emily predicts that Amber will find love. Once in Italy, program supervisor Craig takes all the participant's passports. Despite the rustic images shown online, they stay in a company-ownedmotel, and are told they cannot leave the property without permission. The group begins classes with head chef Liz Bence, which are interrupted by the arrival of Nick and his assistant Kat. Nick reacts strangely upon meeting Amber, saying she resembles his late sister.
Kat pulls Amber out of the lesson and invites her to a bar inLucca, but the plan is overheard by Deb, who tells the other managers, turning the outing into an evening at the "bar" on the Tuscan Grove campus. The following morning, Kat wakes Amber up early and drives her to a yacht, where Nick is waiting. The two have an intimate conversation and kiss. Nick then invites Amber to a party, but tells her not to tell the rest of the group. The next day, Kat takes Amber to the party inRigoli, where she shares a dance with the host Ricky's son and as a result is accosted by his lover. Kat takes her from away from the party and to a club and diner. The two kiss, but Amber stops them; Kat tells Amber that Nick is selfish, and that Amber is not the only woman that he has done this with. Amber awakens the next morning alone in the van. Later that day, she sees Kat driving off with Susie.
Susie is not at the class the following day, and Jen soon leaves, leading Amber to share her suspicions that something is not right with fellow manager Dana. Dana suggests that Nick is the mastermind, but Amber refuses to believe it, blaming Kat. Dana sneaks into the program office and finds pictures of former members, almost all of whom are women. He speculates that he and Fran were chosen because their names caused them to be mistaken for women. Amber sees Nick leaving with Jen and follows them, confronting Nick at his yacht. Nick accuses Amber of trying to push him away, and reveals that he fired Kat, calling her unstable. Amber and Dana demand their passports back from Craig, who encourages them not to "rock the boat". After Nick arrives during a group game ofMafia, Dana confronts him about his impropriety. Nick breaks down, saying that he envisioned Tuscan Grove as a high-end restaurant, only for it to turn into afast casual chain. In the evening, Dana sneaks out to a party at Nick's on-site villa, where he sees men withautomatic weapons. He returns with Amber, and they see Liz Bence, who has not been seen in days, bound and gagged inside. Dana leaves to rescue her, but is heard screaming. When Amber arrives, she finds Deb kneeling over his unconscious body. She returns to the motel and gets Fran; the two of them discover what appears to be Jen's dead body in her bed.
Amber and Fran return to the villa and find a barely conscious Dana, who reveals that he was attacked by a pack ofwild boars. They go into the villa to hide, but discover anorgy happening inside, attended by Nick, members of his family, Liz Bence, and attendees of Ricky's party, all filmed by Craig. The party is interrupted as the pack of boars stampede into the house, sending the guests scattering and allowing Amber to call the police. It is revealed that Jen was merely sleeping, not dead, and that Susie took a spontaneous trip toGenoa, explaining her disappearance. The members of the group return home, with Craig reminding them that they have all signed anon-disclosure agreements. Back in Bakersfield, Nick shows up unexpectedly at Tuscan Grove to ask for Amber's forgiveness, and for them to continue as a couple. She rebuffs him, and smiles as she returns to her work.
Jeff Baena first had the idea forSpin Me Round after filmingThe Little Hours, when he read about anItalian restaurant chain hosting a managerial retreat in Italy that was well below expectations. He began writing it in 2016, producing a 15-pageoutline, and initially involvedAlison Brie for her input on "less-than-ideal suitors".[3] The pair went on to co-write the 2020 filmHorse Girl,[4] which had been noted for subvertingform to inform the story;[5]Spin Me Round plays with genre, and Baena and Brie decided to riff on the theme of subverting expectations in its story.[6][7][8] Baena said that "the film is rooted in the expectation versus reality trope", which forms the basis for the main plot as well as other elements.[7] The location itself is used to subvert expectations, the film operating to "dismantle the fantasy facade of the romanticized nation [of Italy]" at a time when media likeHouse of Gucci andthe second season ofThe White Lotus were being made there.[3]
One of the atypical sub-plots – in which Amber (Brie) unexpectedly "had more sparks with Kat" (Aubrey Plaza) than Nick (Alessandro Nivola) – was included in the story when Baena and Brie noticed that Plaza's chemistry with the female main character in another film (Happiest Season, also co-starring Brie) was unexpectedly more popular than that of the character's love interest, and felt that Plaza could bring the same toSpin Me Round. As well as contributing to the theme of subverting expectations, Baena wanted to write a complicated character for Plaza to play as neither simply villain or victim, and to write "something authentic and confusing" to highlight the moral gray zone of her involvement in the story.[7] The film is intentially set in 2017, to allude to the growth of the#MeToo movement; Brie said that this and the "corporate coercion conspiracy" were direct references to personal situations in her own history.[3]
Spin Me Round was supposed to be filmed in Italy in the summer of 2020, but this was postponed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in Italy.[6][9][10] As was typical of Baena's process, the film was only written as an outline at this point; he and Brie used the delay to expand the film outline into a more detailed script. Plaza, also Baena's partner, gave notes on the screenplay,[6][7] and all three were involved with the television showCinema Toast that Baena produced as "a way to still create" without being able to enter normal production.[11]Spin Me Round was then announced in May 2021, when it entered production.[4]
As well as Brie returning in the main role and as Baena's co-writer, Plaza returned to act in the film -- having not had a role inHorse Girl -- with Nivola,Molly Shannon, andLil Rel Howery also announced to be starring in May 2021.[4] It marked the fourth time Baena had worked with Brie, Plaza, and Shannon for the big screen.[7][6]
Filming began in Italy in June 2021.[12]
Spin Me Round had its world premiere at the2022 South by Southwest festival on March 12, 2022.[13][14] It was released on August 19, 2022, byIFC Films in theaters[15] and byAMC+ onvideo on demand.[16][17]
OnRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 47% based on 86 reviews, with an average rating of 5.4/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "If it never quite lives up to its potential,Spin Me Round remains a dizzily diverting comedy elevated by Alison Brie and Aubrey Plaza's performances."[17] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 58 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[18]
Critics noted the story for "a provocative #MeToo statement".[8][7]The Hollywood Reporter felt it was "amusing but the most lightweight" of Baena's films.[19]
