Spoilers thank you for not smoking.

There is nothing as satisfying as hearing rumors from a small film, finally getting to watch it and it turning to be an extremely well crafted feature. This is not, as you might incorrectly believe, a romantic love story. It’s a messed up one, where all characters are flawed and lofty ideals take a backseat to just trying to carve out your small place in the universe. Short version, go watch it and come back. It’s really worth it.

(Credit: A24)

Love Lies Bleeding (2024) is directed by Rose Glass, who wrote the screenplay with Weronika Tofilska. Lou (Kristen Stewart) works as a gym manager and keeps out of other people’s way. She lives in small town where her father, Lou Sr. (Ed Harris), owns everything and runs a criminal business. Jackie (Katy O’Brian) is the newcomer who has just arrived, getting a job at Lou Sr.’s gun range to make some quick cash to get to Vegas and participate in a bodybuilding competition. To get the job, Jackie hooks up with JJ (Dave Franco) who happens to be the abusive husband to Beth (Jena Malone), Lou’s sister.

Lou instantly feels an attraction to Jackie, and sparks fly as Lou shows her how to use steroids to get big for the competition. As their relationship grows, Beth ends up in the hospital after being horribly beaten up by JJ. This distresses Lou gravely which causes Jackie to feel rage and she go over to JJ’s house to seek to confront him. What transpires changes this dramatic story into no-holds barred thriller as Jackie’s dream of going to Vegas turns into a nightmare while Lou has to deal with the FBI at her door, her criminal father and, perhaps worst of all, an obsessive admirer named Daisy (Anna Baryshnikov) who keeps hanging around Lou and may know way too much.

For sure it works. Set in the late 80’s, this feature does not put Lou’s and Jackie’s relationship as the subject but instead opts for an engrossed crime thriller with gore, doping and smoking. There’s also these drops of dark humour sprinkled here and there that ground the plot in reality. However, as the storytelling gets darker, it also seems to gain a shade of the fantastic in the cinematographic palate. All this leads to a rather strange climactic confrontation which is over the top but still fitting. Interpretations are left to the viewers.

Strongly recommended. It’s hard to call a crime thriller a romance with bloodshed and unabashed violence, but it’s rather the consequences than the actual gory scene, which are few by memorable. I find it rather humanizing to decide to portray two flawed characters in a flawed relationship. In a world this messed up, innocent happiness would have felt dishonest. Very much worth a view and then more.

That will do for now.