“The most captivating, gory and vaguely Coen-esque period lesbian thriller of the season happens to be one without any real input from the Coens themselves. Ethan Coen’s Drive-Away Dolls suffered from its own tiresome whimsical cynicism, while Love Lies Bleeding emerges as a far sturdier entry. This offering is ready to drag you behind a shack and deliver a few hard blows to your cranium. If the Coen parallel provides some merit (a consequence that probably shouldn’t be relied upon), it encompasses the grizzily-filtered noir of Blood Simple and the relentless despair of No Country for Old Men. However, it’s rugged. And humorous. And provocative.
Rose Glass stands independent of any other film industry influences. Half a decade ago, the English woman made waves with a powerful religious shocker, Saint Maud, and now follows many Europeans in leveraging her domestic success to make a shot at classic Americana. The year is 1989, and we find ourselves in a blistering, harsh corner of New Mexico. Kristen Stewart, regularly seen hiding her vulnerability behind a smokescreen of nonchalance, portrays the sullen Louise Langston, initially introduced while clearing a visually blockaded toilet in a down-market gym. Anna Baryshnikov, her teeth a jaundiced yellow, plays Daisy, an attached fan edging towards full-scale obsessive.
It’s the kind of grim setting that Jim Thompson relished in exploiting in his cheap fiction: inexpensive alcohol, hurried intimacy and opportunistic corruption. Ed Harris is always an asset in such scenarios, playing Lou, Louise’s influential father – a role in which he admirably avoids being upstaged by the most outrageous hair in recent film history.
There’s a distinct sense of anticipation for a stranger to arrive and disrupt the unstable status quo. Enter Katy O’Brian as an unpredictable weightlifter, Jackie Cleaver. She finds employment at Lou’s shooting range and a place in Louise’s bed. Portrayed with the aura of a walking tree, Jackie presents as a capricious character even before Lou introduces her to steroids. From then, any minor irritation can ignite whirlwinds of anger. Ultimately, a scene of severe violence – vividly portrayed – sends all characters scattering in various directions.”
Anthony Boyle’s everyday experience is profound: his father’s Gaelic training kit was consistently thrown into a puddle by the same British soldier. Yet, could you discern the non-American origin of this film, if you weren’t previously informed? Unlikely. The poignant revelry in a specific type of frontier decay seems like a characteristic fascination of an awe-struck stranger. The demise of the Berlin Wall is imminent, while the larger American cars remain persistent. These secluded spots still act as though the broader universe is nonexistent. All elements of postwar noir are brought to life in this narrative. Lou openly chooses to resolve any issue with a gunshot and a silencer. Amid the FBI’s increasingly worrisome encroachment, Louise and Jackie concertedly grow uncomfortable. Ben Fordesman’s colourful cinematography interestingly bathes even sign-less environments in neon hues.
Certainly, one might question if these elements adequately cohere. The abrupt nose-dive into quasi-mystical realism poses no issue – the presence of profound metaphors is clear – however, the inconsistency in the narrative is slightly troubling. Lou, absurdly bushy, appears to dwell in some sort of opulent estate despite his days spent in the depths of a decaying warehouse. Moreover, a Las Vegas-related scene seems precariously attached.
Maintaining the pulsate rhythm of the story is the white-hot, fervent romance of the two main characters. Intricate manoeuvring is evident. Jackie, although a delicate victim, embodies the robust brute, the dangerously uninhibited weapon. Initial powerlessness forces Louise to spearhead transformation, becoming the soft-spoken yet dominant alpha female. It would be hard to visualise anyone other than Stewart justifying this role. True to the tradition of noir acting greats, she has defined her own niche – bringing to life a character that is creative, receptive, and ultimately merciless.
Reserved for the daring.
The movie Love Lies Bleeding will be in cinemas from Friday, May 3rd.