The Bad Batch (film)

Plot

A woman named Arlen gets sent to a desert area near Texas where the government dumps people it considers undesirable. A sign there says the zone is no longer part of the US, so American laws and citizenship don't count. Two women in a golf cart kidnap Arlen, chain her up, and cut off her right arm and leg. She manages to trick the woman into freeing her, kills her, sees people eating human limbs, and escapes by crawling on a skateboard.

A mute hermit finds her in the desert and brings her to a settlement called Comfort, which holds all-night raves. Five months later, Arlen has a fake leg and a place in Comfort. She goes into the desert with a pistol, spots a woman and a little girl digging through trash, and shoots the woman dead, accusing her of being a cannibal. Arlen takes the girl, Honey, back to Comfort.

Miami Man, a cannibal leader and Honey's father, searches for her. The hermit tells him to find Comfort. At a rave run by The Dream, Comfort's cult leader, Arlen takes a hallucinogen and loses track of Honey, who ends up with The Dream. While hallucinating, Arlen wanders into the desert, where Miami Man catches her and threatens to kill her unless she finds his daughter.

As they travel to Comfort, they grow close. Miami Man explains he was sent to the territory for being an illegal immigrant from Cuba. Another man shoots Miami Man, and Arlen returns to Comfort. She finds Honey living in The Dream's mansion with many pregnant women.

Arlen pretends to join the harem but pulls a pistol hidden in her prosthetic leg, takes a pregnant woman hostage, gets Honey, and they escape in a golf cart. They meet up with Miami Man, who the hermit healed.

Production

Production on the film was set in motion when Ana Lily Amirpour was named director in January 2015, with Megan Ellison producing through Annapurna Pictures and Danny Gabai and Sina Sayyah producing through Vice Films. By March 2015, Keanu Reeves, Jim Carrey, Jason Momoa, Suki Waterhouse, and Diego Luna had signed on, though Luna’s role ended up as an uncredited cameo. The movie was made for $6 million. Filming started April 8, 2015, in Los Angeles, with additional shooting in Niland and Bombay Beach, California.

Release

The Bad Batch debuted at the Venice Film Festival on September 6, 2016. Netflix secured the SVOD rights, while Screen Media Films initially held theatrical distribution, though Neon later took over. The film also played at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2016. Neon released it in a limited run on June 23, 2017, grossing $201,890. Digital HD sales via Amazon Video and iTunes started June 22, 2017, alongside its Netflix streaming debut. DVD and Blu-ray copies followed on September 19, 2017.