‘Fucktoys’ Review – Annapurna Sriram Brings Style And Sex To Instant Cult Classic [Milwaukee Film Festival 2026]

AP is cursed. Not AP, the news organization, but the main character of Fucktoys, who is simply named AP. Played by director Annapurna Sriram, we meet AP on a perfectly square plot of grass that sits in the middle of a bayou swamp. And by directly in it, I mean, directly. There’s water on the four sides surrounding this patch of grass. Nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. With her on this square grass island is a makeshift divination room and a tarot card reader, one of many we meet throughout the film. And like the other spiritual mediums to come, this one is straight to the point: AP is cursed… and it will take such and such amount of dollars, along with a goat sacrifice, to lift the curse. Like any good movie character, AP is sensible. She accepts the curse-reversing mission, and we’re off to the races. The scene cuts before we can find out how she leaves that plot of grass on the bayou. Like any good opener, the scene tells you exactly the vibe of the film: zany, strange, and full of confidence.

The next time we enter a scene, we find AP riding through some desolate location. Maybe it’s Detroit, Michigan, or Gary, Indiana, or just some other city overtaken by over-industrialization and economic collapse. If you haven’t figured it out by now, the precise location doesn’t matter. The film is vibes, not logic. AP’s off to make some curse-lifting money, and she chooses to make that money through sex work. Early on, she keeps one of her clients tied down in a dingy bathroom, while her friends hang out in the rickety house. A client’s request has her walking the halls in search of a friend with a full bladder. To AP’s relief (and later her friend… and AP’s client), she stumbles upon old flame Danni (Sadie Scott). The two catch up as AP cuts her in on the sex work scene. The two spend the rest of the film in pursuit of cash, love, sex, and destiny. 

Their journey together takes an absurd number of twists and turns, and they meet lost souls, kind and violent, as their evening together progresses. Oh, and as I said earlier, they meet a lot of spiritual mediums. The mediums are black and looking stylish as all get-out, which fits the vibe Sriram created. If I had to describe the film in one word, I’d call it ‘glam-y’. Sparkling lens filters. Elegant, old school zooms. Color upon color fills up each frame, and each location has its own unique visual punch to it. The female characters all get fabulous headshots. The grain stock is heavy, but somehow that’s just way sexier than today’s digital sleekness. The whole thing sparkles.  

Thankfully, the whole cast is bought into the fever dream. Sadie Scott’s tomboyish Danni has the most to unpack. She’s naive, hypnotic, and aggressive. Of AP’s many clients, Ozark’s Damian Young brings a heartfelt straightman vibe to Robert, a not-so-straight-but-oh-no-he’s-married man who takes a fatherly approach to his arrangement with AP. Robert’s faults and sincerity are on full display in Fucktoys, and Damian Young’s work brings some reality to AP’s very wacky exploits. Canadian stalwart François Arnaud fills the third act with charm and more… but the less said here, the better.

People will say the film channels the campy sexual experimental nature of John Waters, 1970’s exploitation films, and 1980s satire like Repo Man and They Live, and they’d be completely right. Fucktoys is a throwback through and through, and it’s all the better for it. While the film is free from any kind of norm, it takes that freedom and uses it to provide a layered take on sex work and power structures. Though AP and her colleagues are very matter-of-fact about their prostitution, each scene stokes every character’s trauma, shedding light on the darkness within everyone. It’s this blend of camp with smarts that I found arresting. I adored this film and believe it will be a mainstay for many counter-culture types. Expect to see this film pop up in film classes, LGBTQ third spaces, and midnight movie screenings for decades to come. Annapurna Sriram has arrived.

Fucktoys was screened at the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival.