Love Lies Bleeding is a movie that we’ve all seen before – a drama that’s sexy, gorey, dark and so incredibly visceral that you feel like you need a shower afterwards – but far bigger, better and gayer. Dramatic and psychotic at times, director Rose Glass hasn’t journeyed far from her breakout horror Saint Maud, giving 80s gym culture a dark twist.
The story is centered around the seedy underbelly of a small New Mexico and the manager of Crater Gym Lou (Kristen Stewart), who’s going nowhere fast, and Jackie (Katy M. O’Brian), who is going somewhere specific, and going extremely fast. Jackie appears on the scene as an extremely sculpted stray, hitch-hiking her way to Las Vegas to compete for her lifelong dream – to be recognised as an elite bodybuilder. The two hit it off immediately and move in together after their first hook up – cue the audience’s chuckle at the lesbian stereotype. While their relationship grows, Jackie works out almost constantly and Lou introduces her to the world of steroids to help her get an edge in the lead up to her Vegas competition. Their happiness develops precariously in the shadow of Lou’s family’s violent background and her fathers (Lou Snr – Ed Harris) crooked criminal dealings.
Relying heavily on cut-scenes and implied nefarious dealings – we are not ever explicitly told what the Big Bad is that is hovering so menacingly over everyone’s heads. There’s visits from the FBI, the obligatory skeevy and abusive brother in law (JJ – Dave Franco), allusions to running guns across the Mexican border and a suspiciously deep ravine. While the script and character development is rather thin on the ground, it is completely made up for with the deliciously dark cinematography and the phenomenal acting from Stewart and O’Brian.
In order for this film not to waver too far into the realm of gore and to retain the love story at the heart of the piece, Glass and cinematographer Ben Fordesman create a visual feast of brutality and tender ordinary moments. Together they beautify the mundane – from Stewart chain smoking and making omelets (without the yolks, of course) to late night trips into the desert to dispose of bodies; and they heighten the gore of each violent act. This, along with the absurdist elements that feel like a trope of all A24 films, develops an intricate balance that will keep viewers rapt.
Finally, it would be remiss not to mention the stunning performances of the two leads. The two are magnetic from their first interactions, bodies curving around each other in deliciously instinctive patterns of love, lust and carnage. O’Brian plays the joyously insane Jackie with reckless abandon, which, against Lou’s slow implosion, is as delightful as it is sickening.
In the beginning, Love Lies Bleeding might feel like just another story you’ve head before, with Glass at the helm this moonlit full-tilt ‘roided out extravaganza will have you hooked until the end.
7/10
