She Dies Tomorrow (2020), Directed by Amy Seimetz.
She Dies Tomorrow is the sophmore film from Amy Seimetz that's stylised visuals result in it feeling often times weightless and lacking density.
Seimetz's use of visual story telling here is impeccable, from the neon colours representing the central cursed idea, to the poignant lighting sparsley used, conveying terror when it is - the cinematography and visuals are by far the standout here; along with the sharp editing that keeps the pace on this albeit short film as it is, at a fluid pace throughout.
However, as much as I enjoyed this - mostly for its intriguing premise - unfortuantely, the execution just isn't fully there. Sitting at just one hour and 25 minutes, She Dies Tomorrow just didn't feel like there was enough meat on the bones; we get introduced to such an array of characters, yet spend such little time with any them to really understand who they are. As the film progresses, characters keep getting introduced but our interest in them fades more and more with every new addition. Because of this, the film begins to feel weightless.
The themes of mental health and the literal fear of death are poignant and relevant here, giving us something to relate to but because of our absence of any real main character, Seimetz almost throws the themes out there and hopes something will stick with audiences - and like most 'deep' films, its up to interpretation. This ambiguity some will like, adding to repeat viewings but not me, this comes across as unintentional and a cop-out for actually crafting an organised and cohesive film.
The acting throughout is stellar across the board, I just wish the cast had more to play with in their characters.
This feels like a common case of style over substance.
