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If classic genres are like roadmaps, the new movie “Zola” — steered by two exotic dancers who go on a whirlwind weekender in Florida — is what happens when you turn off the navigation. Directed by Janicza Bravo, “Zola” starts out as an impromptu American road trip and descends into chaos.

The titular protagonist, played by Taylour Paige, is a self-possessed Black woman waitressing in Detroit when she encounters Stefani, played by Riley Keough, a White girl with a heavy “blaccent” (Bravo’s words) who seems warm if a bit “fruit loops,” as Zola notes to another waitress. But they soon bond over dancing, and Stefani entices Zola into an impulsive trip down to Florida to make bank at a nightclub.

“At its core, it is a story about friendship, and it’s a story about fast friendships specifically,” Bravo…