The stoner comedy is evergreen. The kids may not be drinking like they used to, but they still know the value of inventing the Bong-O-Tron and mounting a TV on the ceiling so you can watch a basic cable nature show called Freak of the Deep while lying down.
That’s what Frankie (Kristen Stewart) and Molly (Alia Shawkat) are up to when we meet them in their Los Angeles apartment, which they have dubbed “Casa de Chill Zone.” As their property manager Axel (Thomas La Barbera Christensen) observes, the girls are always smokin’ that dink dank. He also observes that they are late with the rent. Frankie is a former Stanford engineering student who flunked out when her ADHD got the better of her. Now she’s developing groundbreaking new THC delivery systems and driving deliveries for an app called Kwik Thingz. Molly is scraping by as she dreams of opening her own pot-themed bakery.
Jealous of Molly’s relationship with her reasonably stable and financially secure boyfriend Josh (Zack Fox), Frankie cyberstalks her ex-boyfriend to a club where L.A. psych-rock band Mannequin Pussy is playing, only to find him with Frances (also Stewart), a girl who looks just like her, only with glasses. Turns out Frances is actually a research scientist. After Frankie gets into a drunken scuffle with her and steals Frances’ glasses, she gets picked up by Dave (LaKeith Stanfield). But once he gets Frankie back to his apartment, Dave reveals that he is not, in fact, a metalhead, but instead a secret operative who is trying to hand off a briefcase containing the most profound scientific discovery of the century to Frances.
The briefcase contains vials of glowing red liquid that the accompanying letter implies is an advanced experimental psychedelic drug derived from a giant squid. Naturally, Frankie and Molly have to try it. After an intense trip, they discover that they have developed psychic powers and can communicate telepathically with their cats Dio (Seth Rogen) and GG (Kumail Nanjiani).
Strapped for cash, the roommates go to a swanky party of tech-bro Stanford grads hosted by Martin (Tony Hale), where they intend to sell the drug. But needless to say, Dr. Olsen (Kate McKinnon), the creator of the drug, wants it back, as does the shadowy industrialist Mrs. Kock (Sugar Lyn Beard), and Not Metalhead Dave.
The Wrong Girls is clearly a labor of love for everyone involved. Director Dylan Meyer is married to her star Stewart, which might be the reason her performance is the loosest and most fun of her career. Stewart and Shawkat’s stoner enthusiasm is infectious. They find a perfect foil in Kate McKinnon’s fiercely controlled Dr. Strangelove routine. Meyer’s screenplay walks the line between smart and stupid like a classic Cheech & Chong movie. This picture might not make much of a splash in theaters, but I predict it will be stared at and and giggled to on late night TV for years to come.
