Strong muscles, visible veins, and electronic music pulsate in 'Love Lies Bleeding,' an intense, highly sensual modern noir film soaked in sweat, blood, and insect remains.
If that last moment seems a bit unexpected, the scene involving Ed Harris munching on a beetle is just one of many unconventional elements in Rose Glass's movie. It's a gritty, fable-like crime thriller with a lesbian theme, where bodies of all sizes are brutalized under the starry desert sky.
Not all of it is successful. Excessive melodrama and flashy surrealism detract from the gripping allure of 'Love Lies Bleeding.' However, the movie comes remarkably close to being the ideal Kristen Stewart film. Stewart has been a captivating star for years. In 'Love Lies Bleeding,' she plays Lou, a cynical gym employee who falls in love with a wandering bodybuilder named Jackie (portrayed by Katy O’Brian). This film provides Stewart with a vivid noir setting where her talent for obsession, desire, and rage can be fully expressed.
Glass, the British director who made a striking debut with the 2019 horror film 'Saint Maud,' begins 'Love Lies Bleeding' with a somewhat magical scene, focusing on the stars. The camera then slowly pans down to a warehouse in New Mexico where music is thumping and people are gathering. What sinister nighttime establishment could this be? It is momentarily disappointing to learn that it's simply a gym, filled with individuals pushing themselves to the limit with exercise equipment and dumbbells. Signs around them proclaim slogans like 'Only Losers Quit.'
The desire to become stronger—whether through weightlifting, drugs, firearms, power, or perhaps love—echoes throughout 'Love Lies Bleeding.' Glass often captures swollen muscles, reminiscent of the Hulk, but these physical developments pale in comparison to the tremendous transformation that Lou and Jackie ultimately experience together.
To the gym-goers, weakness is akin to poison. Lou is attempting to quit smoking, while Jackie is fixated on the concept of becoming a bodybuilder and achieving self-realization. Additionally, there's the malign influence of the local shooting range, where Lou Sr. (portrayed by Harris) oversees a corrupt business dealing in guns, surrounded by creepy crawlies. The satire of 'Love Lies Bleeding' is bold. A billboard reads: 'Dreams, Next Exit.'
The shooting range is where Jackie secures employment after a transactional encounter with a sleazy, mullet-wearing flunky named JJ (played by Dave Franco) in his car. 'That was magical,' he remarks, in reference to something that was clearly not. The real magic will come later in 'Love Lies Bleeding,' but not for JJ, whose mistreatment of his wife and Lou's sister Beth (depicted by Jena Malone) sets off a series of violent events that reluctantly draw Lou closer to the estranged father she resents, Lou Sr.
All of this unfolds due to the love that blossoms between Lou and Jackie. It begins with a steroid injection and a kiss, quickly evolving into a passionate and protective bond. Their increasingly strong connection leads them to extreme acts of violence. Being in love means being ruthless—towards former partners (Anna Baryshnikov portrays a scorned love interest of Lou's) and family members alike.
Jackie’s steroid-fueled mental disturbance is also a factor, making “Love Lies Bleeding” a fascinating companion to the unreleased Jonathan Majors bodybuilder movie “Magazine Dreams,” as well as “The Iron Claw,” another muscular A24 film about family decay and muscle-building.
Similar to that movie, “Love Lies Bleeding” takes place in the 1980s, but it feels more timeless. As the events unfold in the script by Glass and Weronika Tofilska, the film maintains a broad perspective on the grim happenings, sometimes reflecting Jackie’s drugged delusions, such as when she goes to Las Vegas to take part in a body-building contest, or focusing on Lou Sr. as he calmly manipulates situations.
But it’s risky to shift the focus away from Stewart. “Love Lies Bleeding” loses some momentum every time she’s not on screen. However, no one would want less of Harris in “Love Lies Bleeding.” He appears to be improving with age, his voice more impactful. Despite his exaggerated appearance in the film — bald on top with long hair down to his shoulders — he effectively anchors a movie that relies on some unnecessary flashy elements. (I worry that this is an increasingly common result of today’s troubled movie industry — a tendency to overcompensate with attention-grabbing eccentricity.)
However, neo-noirs created with this level of style deserve some freedom to take big risks. As the saying goes, “Only losers quit.”
“Love Lies Bleeding,” released by A24, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for violence and graphic images, sexual content, nudity, frequent strong language, and drug use. Duration: 104 minutes. Three out of four stars.
