Die My Love
Film
A stationary camera sits in the back of a run-down house, giving us an unflinching look into the arrival of the new owners. A seemingly happy young couple, Grace (Jennifer Lawrence) and Jackson (Robert Pattinson), look in through the front door as Jackson is telling a story about his family. I can't be sure what he says as the walls block out much of the sound. Soon, the new homeowners enter in front of the camera and begin to settle in, as the camera ever so slowly zooms towards them. Then, loud music begins to blare as a chaotic montage of the couple dancing in the kitchen is blurring in front of our eyes. Dancing, screaming, kissing, suddenly, Grace is pregnant, all of these moments smashed together in a wildly kinetic and messy stretch that probably lasts mere seconds but feels like an eternity. Lynne Ramsay's long-awaited return yields a technically dazzling but emotionally hollow exercise in performative chaos in Die My Love.
Ramsay's cacophonous film is overflowing with the tumult of marriage, identity, and parenthood, yet little to no of this mess comes from Grace and Jackson's child. It's almost entirely internalized by Grace and Jackson to some degree. Delivering a sensational performance that is comparable to her work in Darren Aronofsky's Mother!, Lawrence completely unravels into a postpartum tsunami of emotional and mental instability that becomes more unpredictable with every passing second. There are some tongue-in-cheek references to our innate animalistic instincts, surrounding parenthood and sex, as Lawrence's Grace often crawls around on the ground in her semi-lucid state. Not to mention the juxtaposition of life and death is yet another wrinkle in Ramsay's sprawling experiential film. Jackson's mother, Pam (Sissy Spacek), who's grieving over the loss of her husband Harry six months prior, mentions that "everybody goes a little loopy in the first year," to which Grace misinterprets as a dig at her mental state after giving birth. Little bits and pieces of dialogue scattered throughout the screenplay string together a bare-bones narrative that is as abstract and difficult to follow as the film itself. Making Die My Love a great film to feel but a frustrating and tiring journey to follow. There isn't a direct plot to follow, but more of characters' actions to witness and interpret, which can be difficult if the film doesn't resonate with you.
But such is Ramsay's deliberate purpose of the film. Die My Love isn't meant to be a straightforward structure of one couple's journey from start to finish. Instead, it is a performative art piece that is a maelstrom of emotion, chaos, and incredibly abstract imagery. Seamus McGarvey's cinematography is absolutely breathtaking and makes the film a bit more interesting to watch. The lush color of the Montana wilderness mixed with the dream-like texture in the air makes for an intoxicating visual appeal. A worthy technical companion for Ramsay's performers' descent into depression and madness.
Yet through all of the piecemeal appeal throughout Die My Love, I couldn't help but feel unattached to the comings and goings of emotional distress, frenetic noises, and overwhelming sense of directionless. Ramsay is certainly an auteur and has crafted fantastic films that have hit hard for me. You Were Never Really Here and We Need to Talk About Kevin are both tremendous emotional feats, but her latest didn't connect the same way. Lawrence and Pattinson are astounding on screen, but their performative spectacle lacked the depth that I felt was there, hiding behind the curtain of Ramsay's characters. Grace's postpartum distress and Jackson's pathetic helplessness are mired with too many obfuscations like Lakeith Stanfield's mysterious biker, and a mess of a timeline that jitters back and forth, blurring the metaphor serving as the backbone for all of the wild occurrences. As a film to experience, it's remarkable in its technical prowess and artistic approach, but as a narrative, the lack of structure whittled down the drama until it was flat and incoherent.
Froth
McGarvey's cinematography was a real standout for me here, even if I didn't ultimately care for the film as a whole. Some of his shots were just too wonderful to ignore, and I found myself drooling at the coloring, lighting, and almost dreamlike atmosphere he created in remote Montana. Especially the nighttime scenes. It almost reminded me of a Pablo Larraín film type of texture, where a hazy cover slips over the frame, never obscuring our view but putting us in a bit of a daze. For that reason I found it prudent to go with a Hazy IPA here, specifically Fast Fashion's Business Special. It's extraordinarily hazy appearance is the tell tale sign for what you're gonna get, a cloud-like softness. A pillowy texture that accentuates the bursting citrus, pineapple, and mango sweetness which is just divine. There's a touch of grapefruit on the backend which helps to even out the sweetness, but overall it tastes quite balanced. It's a wonderful treat and I don't think I've ever gone wrong with a Fast Fashion beer. I've probably said that every time I've paired something with Fast Fashion or brought a friend there, but hey, when you're right, you're right.
