Love Lies Bleeding

DIRECTOR ROSE GLASS & HER CO-SCREENWRITER, WERONIKA TOFILSKA, HAVE SUCCEEDED IN COMBINING SEVERAL DIFFERENT GENRES: LOVE STORY, CRIME DRAMA, & A SCIOLOGICAL TREATISE THAT DEALS WITH IMPORTANT ISSUES LIKE MISOGYNY, HOMOPHOBIA, DOMESTIC ABUSE, & THE ABUSE OF STEROIDS. HOWEVER, I WISH THAT LOU (KRISTEN STEWART) HADN'T REFERRED TO HER SISTER, BETH (JENA MALONE) AS "BRAINLESS" BECAUSE SHE IS A VICTIM OF DOMESTIC ABUSE & WE SHOULD ALAYA PUT ALL OF THE BLAME FOR THESE SITUATIONS ON THE ABUSER & NOT ON THE VICTIM. ALSO, MS. GLASS & HER CINEMATOGRAPHER, BEN FORDESMAN SUCCEEDED IN CREATING A DARK ATMOSPHERE FOR THE FILM, WHICH HELPS TO SUSTAIN THE SENSE OF DOOM THROUGHOUT THE FILM. MS. GLASS ALSO ELICITED VERY GOOD PERFORMANCES FROM THE FILM'S ACTORS & ACTRESSES. THIS WAS PARTICULARLY TRUE IN THE DEVASTATED LOOK FROM MS. STEWART WHEN LOU'S SLEAZY & ABUSIVE BROTHER-IN-LAW (DAVE FRANCO) TELLS HER A BOUT THE TIME HE HAD SEX WITH HER GIRLFRIEND JACKIE (KATE O'BRIEN) & WHEN WE SEE ED HARRIS GO FROM MENACING VILLIAN TO SEEMINGLY CARING FATHER & BACK TO MENACING VILLAIN. UNFORTUNEATLY, THE FILM ENDS WITH LOU DOING SOMETHING THAT MAKES HER LOOK JUST AS BAD AS HER FATHER, BUT, UNLIKE HER FATHER, SHE DOESN'T GET PUNISHED FOR WHAT SHE DOES.