Make It a Double Feature: ‘Love Lies Bleeding’ and ‘Eileen’

It’s the weekend, a time of unwinding after days of draining work and possible movie-watching. Between movie theaters housing the newest releases and countless streamers, one has infinite film-watching options. Of course, one might be overwhelmed and unsure what to watch because they have boundless options. That’s where this new column, “Make It a Double Feature,” comes in. 

If you’re finding something to watch, here is a guide with each piece featuring two films that may or may not be different in genre yet share storyline similarities. Whether it’s a post on a new release and an old B&W film or one on a ’90s film and a ‘50s classic, this column will contain many double-feature recommendations. Our first recommendation is two relatively new films. One is currently in theaters, while the other is available on VOD. Both are sleek noir thrillers with a period setting involving queer women flustered by their small-town life caught up in corruption. Furthermore, both pictures are sophomore efforts by their respective filmmakers that made their premiere at Sundance. 

The former is Love Lies Bleeding, Rose Glass’ follow-up to Saint Maud. Stuck working a mundane job as a gym manager, Lou (Kristen Stewart) finds her world re-awakened when she crosses paths with Jackie (Katy O’Brian), a bodybuilder making her way to a competition in Las Vegas. Their romantic and blissful bond eventually turns volatile once Lou’s criminal father (Ed Harris) becomes more reintegrated into her life. 

With its synthesized score by Clint Mansell and grainy cinematography by Ben Fordesman, Love Lies Bleeding is a raw, ultraviolent thriller that feels plucked out of the 1980s. It’s also worth a watch for the performances by Kristen Stewart, who does her best work to date as Lou, newcomer Katy O’Brian, and the actress who nearly walks away with the entire film: Anna Baryshnikov as Daisy, Lou’s mousy yet sinister acquaintance. Between this film and Saint Maud, studios should only continue to give Rose Glass money to do whatever she wants. 

As for the other half of the suggested double feature now available on VOD, it is Eileen by William Oldroyd, whose previous feature, Lady Macbeth, announced Florence Pugh as a new star. Compared to the 80’s aesthetic of Love Lies Bleeding, Eileen is more of a slow burn with a sleek Hitchcockian flair right down to Anne Hathaway playing a mysterious icy blonde. Also, instead of a blue-collar town in 1989, we’re taken to 1960s Boston. The titular character (played by Thomasin McKenzie) works a mundane job at a juvenile detention center and lives with her alcoholic father (the always-reliable Shea Whigham). But when psychiatrist Rebecca (Anne Hathaway) joins her prison’s staff, Eileen immediately becomes infatuated before things turn dangerous for both of them in the film’s final act. 

Besides its storyline involving female protagonists experiencing a dangerous rupturing of their mundane life, drawing more parallels to Love Lies Bleeding is that Eileen features career-best performances from its two main leads and one supporting actress nearly grabbing the movie from under them. Anne Hathaway does her best work in years as Rebecca, exuding movie-star magnetism in almost every scene while Thomasin McKenzie mostly lets her expressive eyes reflect Eileen’s impulsivity and sudden thrill for danger. Meanwhile, Marin Ireland, who earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Supporting Performance, almost steals the show towards the end as the distraught mother of an inmate.

To go into why Ireland is a scene-stealer would veer into spoiler territory. That’s why it’s best to let you discover the almost-overlooked gem while recommending buying a ticket to Love Lies Bleeding at your nearest theater while you can. If you want to see great performances by actresses at the top of their game and are in the mood for a good thriller, why not make it a double feature?

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Matt St. Clair

Matt is a New England-based freelance journalist who lives and breathes the world of cinema and has been an Oscar watcher since the age of eight. His writing can be found on outlets such as The Film Experience, Roger Ebert, Digital Spy, and Slashfilm. He is also a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic and a Gay & Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association member. You can follow him on Twitter @filmguy619. (He/They)

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