Die My Love: LFF Film Review
I have tipped Jessie Buckley for the Best Actress Oscar, and I still stand by that. However, now that I have seen Die My Love, I think she’s got some stiff competition from Jennifer Lawrence.
The black comedy/psychological thriller stars Lawrence as Grace, a new mum who is suffering from postpartum depression following the birth of her son. Living in a remote Montana home, she is often left alone with a crying baby and a yapping dog all day while her partner Jackson (Robert Pattinson) is at work. Grace slowly loses her mind and starts to become a danger to herself.
Die My Love is a dark and bleak slow-burner with occasional patches of black comedy. This is more of a vibes film than one with a lot of plot, because the whole point of it is to depict Grace’s headspace. Director/co-writer Lynne Ramsay does a remarkable job of showing Grace’s mental decline without much dialogue. It is repetitive at times, because that’s the cyclical nature of life at home with a new baby, and it is often slow, quiet and abstract, so it won’t be for everyone. It reminded me a lot of Nightbitch, without the turning into a dog part.
The film revolves around Lawrence’s performance and she has never been better. She is the reason the story is as gripping as it is. She attacks the material ferociously and fearlessly and throws herself into a role that requires nudity, sexual scenes and a lot of crawling around on the floor. This is miles beyond her performance in Silver Linings Playbook, for which she won the Oscar. She is raw and primal as she navigates Grace’s isolation, depression, dark impulses and insatiable sexual desires.
Pattinson is fully in supporting mode, letting Lawrence rip and steal every scene, but he’s still very good as the helpless partner who doesn’t know what to do. Sissy Spacek is also excellent as Jackson’s mother Pam, who is more aware of Grace’s mental illness than her son. Although Grace insists she’s fine, Pam knows better.
Die My Love is a unique and unusual fever dream of a film that I had to sit with for a while before articulating my thoughts. It’s a bit too slow and ambiguous for me, but Lawrence’s audacious performance is a must-watch.
Showing at the London Film Festival. In cinemas on Friday 7th November