In our calloused world it’s hard to find a love to root for, real or cinematic. Stolen glances from across the room. A chance meeting by way of tangled canine harnesses. A shared caffeine addiction at the local cafe. Bumping digits while reaching for the same dusty novel in a used bookstore.
The decline of such organic fated encounters and star-crossed lovers is seemingly reflected in our recent romance movies, or lack thereof. We’re lucky to be blessed with one rom-com for every 20 superhero movies. Of the ones that manage to reach theaters, the likelihood that the two socially accepted hotties filling in as the lovelorn sweethearts will actually share sparks on screen? Forget about it.
Perhaps that’s the biggest reason why Love Lies Bleeding stands so far apart from the pack: the minute Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian spot each other standing opposite of their sweaty gym mats, the mutual adoration is palpable.
This fiery entry of a dark and twisted romance story marks director Rose Glass’s sophomore outing after her debut stunner Saint Maud in 2019. Again, Glass depicts friction between intensely grounded characters in surreal situations and depicts the explosively passionate results.
Stewart stars as Lou, a rough-around-the-edges loner idling through her 9-5 at a small workout facility in an even smaller town. O’Brian plays Jackie, a drifter gym rat looking to bulk up at Lou’s place of business while she couch surfs her way to a bodybuilding competition in Las Vegas.
Shortly after meeting and hitting it off, Stewart’s Lou and O’Brian’s Jackie shack up together. Lou begins supplying her newfound round-the-clock, reps-pumping girlfriend with the exact kind of medicine she needs to prepare for the upcoming competition: Love, a spoonful of sugar, the unfettered loyalty of a true bond. And oh yeah, steroids.
For a while it’s a dream come true. The training progresses, Jackie nabs a job waitressing at the local watering hole, and keeps Lou company working out at Lou’s gym. Then Lou introduces Jackie to her beautiful but brainwashed sister Beth (Jena Malone) and Beth’s wildly abusive husband JJ (Dave Franco), and everything comes to a screeching halt. After a random act of violence threatens to dig up long-buried secrets, Lou and Jackie find out exactly how far they’re willing to go to stay together.
Even with snatched bods, razor-sharp jawlines, legs for days, and their own personal charisma, most couples in recent romances lack chemistry. Studios interpret this as a lack of demand for makeout movies, but the insane gobs of money made by recent Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell led rom-com Anyone But You suggests otherwise.
A sense of chemistry and genuine love infuses Love Lies Bleeding; the leads appear to be smitten with each other. The story pulls out all the stops with drugs, there’s shootouts, running from the law, explosions, hard bodies, short skirts, bulging muscles, questionable motives, vivid hallucinations, fights, guns, booze, bad guys, freakouts, gore, sparkles, fantasy worlds. All of it would fall flat if we couldn’t believe they’d do anything for each other. Luckily, this flick is dripping with enough sexual tension to drown in.
Credibility is further amped by visceral onscreen sex. Most recent Hollywood movies relegate eroticism to a few scenes of locked lips, cautiously laid sheets, perfectly lit bedroom eyes, and morning-after shy smiles. Director Glass is having none of that. Lou and Jackie’s sex is aggressive, vocal, and believes in the build-up. Glass’s film responsibly depicts an adult relationship between two consenting women. No objectification of the male gaze here; Love Lies Bleeding treats a sexual female relationship the way it should be: as normal.
Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian deserve full credit, alongside director Glass, for crafting a complex and deeply sentimental dynamic. Their romance is one for the ages. Stewart is an artistic force to be reckoned with, an incendiary star who continues to make fascinating choices in her career that push her to grow and explore.
The newer-on-the-scene Katy O’Brian shines brightly depicting a loveable new kid in town who doesn’t know her own strength. Jackie’s fierce devotion is expressed though dazzling animated facial features that pull you in every time she speaks on her passions.
Jena Malone, who often plays tough-girl types, shows range in a more subdued role, while Dave Franco is perfectly cast as a two-timing layabout husband riddled with grease stains and guilt, and sporting sideburns long enough to choke on. But the real gem in the supporting cast is Ed Harris, evil as his hair is long, who owns the local gun range, a strangely apt bug collection, and the reluctant title of Lou’s old man.
Beautifully shot by Ben Fordesman, Love Lies Bleeding is a wonderfully strange, staggeringly tense odyssey into the dangers of devotion and all-consuming infatuation. The movie dares ask the question, “How far would you go for the one you love?,” and does not hold back on the answer.
With a wickedly sinister score by Clint Mansell, accompanied by gnarly sound effects that crack and scramble scenes until they are pulsating with tension, this adrenaline-fueled romantic romp is the one to beat so far this year. Lisa Frankenstein, eat your heart out.
