Love Lies Bleeding: An Ambitious Love Story

Every once in a while a movie will come out that has a ton of really cool ideas and interweaving narratives that will leave the viewer wanting more. A movie like this will have great performances, a nuanced plot, and interesting backstories that are only slightly touched on. Love Lies Bleeding fits into this category, even if some of the more underdeveloped aspects could have been a little more fleshed out.

Love Lies Bleeding tells the (as the title would imply) love story that unfolds between gym manager Louise (Kristen Stewart) and aspiring bodybuilder Jackie (Katy O’Brian), both of whom lack clear direction in their lives. Both have their secrets and both have to deal with their pasts coming back to haunt them. Ed Harris, Jena Malone, Anna Baryshnikov, and Dave Franco also star.

The key aspect of this film that makes it stand out so far above most of the other theatrical fare available currently is the performances. At this point, Jena Malone, Ed Harris, and Kristen Stewart have reached a status where audiences should expect something interesting and well-handled from these actors, even if what they are doing is a departure from what they have done before but the real discoveries were Katy O’Brian (probably best known as Eila Kane in The Mandalorian or Jentorra in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) and Anna Baryshnikov (best known for Dickinson and Superior Donuts). It’s early in the cycle but hopefully come next year when Oscar nominations come out, Katy O’Brian’s role is not forgotten because she is fantastic in this film and could be in contention for Best Actress.

The only real issue the movie has is that it tries to fit too many ideas into its limited runtime. The main story is Jacky and Louise’s romance in the face of some wildly dangerous situations related to Louise’s family. The problem comes from the fact that the family drama that’s at the core of that conflict is never really properly grappled with. There’s one family member who is missing throughout the film and it is never really explained why until the third act, but when the revelation happens the character the reveal pertains to never having a chance to deal with the information. The final scenes of the movie are a little off-putting as well considering what the characters had been up to at that point and maybe a little extra screen time would have solved these issues.

Regardless of that, those issues should not dissuade anyone from seeing the film because it is still beautifully shot and acted to the point where it is definitely worth a watch. It’s better to leave the audience wanting more than leaving them thinking the film overstayed its welcome and Love Lies Bleeding definitely falls into the category of the former. Writer/Director Rose Glass is definitely establishing herself as someone to watch going forward and it will definitely be interesting to see what she brings next.

Final Rating: 8/10