It’s tough to make it in the movie business, and access and opportunities depend so heavily on the people you know. When something has happened to mar key relationships, it can understandably be difficult to get back on the right path and make a comeback. Misty Green follows an extremely self-destructive actress who hasn’t worked in a while and is desperate need of a cash infusion, but whose tendency towards making the worst possible choice in each situation is her consistent undoing.
Misty Green (Rosalind Eleazar) is woken up by the widow of her deceased lover telling her to leave the apartment he told her she could stay in, and the fact that she recognizes her from an Emmy-winning show she did years ago gets her a one-week pass before she has to get all of her stuff out. Her agent Randy (Topher Grace) has an audition for her, but instead of learning her lines, she goes out partying with Zach (Adam Driver), who is the definition of a bad influence. A run-in with Jordan (Chris Rock), a director who shares a name with her bipolar brother (Daniel Kaluuya), presents an unexpected chance at a major part, provided Misty doesn’t make the same mistakes she’s made in the past.
There’s no denying that Misty is a magnetic character, someone who radiates such talent, particularly when she’s given a microphone to sing, but has let her ego get in the way when her choices and actions indicate a need for penance and begging for forgiveness. But the story surrounding her feels just as messy as Misty’s life, which, in this particular snapshot, finds little in the way of positivity to extract from any of her actions with the people around her and few redeeming qualities that suggest audiences should at all be rooting for her success.
This is Rock’s fourth time behind the camera as director following Head of State, I Think I Love My Wife, and Top Five. While there are many moments of intended humor, this is much more of a drama that leans on Misty’s penchant for running towards trouble rather than away from it as one of its guiding principles. Rock casts himself in a role that’s meant to be the clearest olive branch for Misty but which also comes with a considerable amount of judgment given how their past professional interactions have left him cleaning up after her failure to perform as expected.
It’s not what audiences will expect from him, particularly as writer and director, but it’s also far from the slam dunk that A24 distribution might indicate. Rock makes peculiar filmmaking choices, including a few scenes where dialogue and events from earlier in the film are replayed for no apparent reason, and titles introducing new locations appear without much justification for their placement. This film’s starting point makes sense but its ending is more befuddling, tacking on several codas that add nothing to the story rather than choosing a resounding and emphatic place at which to conclude.
Eleazar had a good deal of Oscar buzz going into the Toronto International Film Festival that may have dissipated following the tepid reception to the film. Primarily known for her more buttoned-up work on Slow Horses, she does her best with this mess of a character to make her feel real and raw, and she deserves commendation for her efforts. This is not the best work that anyone in the supporting cast, including Anna Kendrick, Driver, Kaluuya, Grace, and Rock, has done before, but there’s no one person who drags it down. Misty Green has a handful of interesting ideas and worthwhile moments, but, as a whole, it doesn’t really know what it’s supposed to be.
Movie Rating: 5/10
Misty Green makes its world premiere in the Gala Presentations section at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival and will be released theatrically by A24 on October 9th.
