Bleed with Me

Bleed with Me (2020) was probably meant to be a short film.

Instead, what we got is 50 minutes of pure filler with mundane dialogue and scenes with supposedly disturbing imagery, which aren't going to impress a single horror fan.

After these, we get to a potentially usable plot point (which was done a million times, but ok), and then the film ends. It's like watching a series pilot (but with no cliffhanger) or a prequel to an interesting film that preps you on the more interesting events. Like if the main story wasn't the focus of the film.

If your story is so obvious and has no twist whatsoever - build up interesting dialogue, uncomfortable scenes, hints, anything that might interest the viewer, not just everyday talk that goes nowhere.

The main lead is just a "victim" type character that can be used to provide some interesting twists. The boyfriend could've been written out. He has nothing to do in the film at all.

Like, ok, great, you have this obsessive girl and her colleague who has never seen anything good in her life. Make a play around that, let them interact with each other, change each other. Wouldn't it be great if they would agree to live like that while the boyfriend wasn't into it, and eventually, they would kill him instead. Then, after some time, the supposed victim would become dominant in their relationship? It would've been at least something interesting.

If the idea was to fill the film with metaphors and allusions, why not go full arthouse so the viewers would not understand anything and think the film was just too clever for them?

I don't know. It looks like a tiny project, which is fine. But if you got a release, why not do your absolute best to impress the viewers? Do something crazy with your story?

Basically, the movie has the seeds of an interesting story, but it never develops, and even after 50 minutes of filler, the story doesn't go anywhere. The ending feels like absolutely nothing.

Good luck next time.

All the technical aspects are fine. Marshall does a great job of portraying an awkward introvert. It's just that the overall story is very thin and stretched out slowly. Couple and a new friend go off to a cabin, there's talking, lots of talking, I get they're establishing the characters but this drags out. Anyway, it's a "is this really happening or am I crazy?" plot once it gets going, and it does that part well. There's just not much to it to make for a solid film.

This is the particular type of indie horror movie that aims for "evocative" but ends up "dull." There are endless closeup shots of characters' faces in which we're meant to read all sorts of emotions or glean information, but it's impossible to tell what they're going for.

If there were a meaningful resolution to the whole thing, it might retroactively make the whole movie worth it. But it doesn't resolve, it just stops. I was left wondering what if anything the filmmaker was trying to say.

The first 30 minutes of this movie is very good after that you keep scratching your head thinking to yourself hmm where's this plot going.

I enjoyed filmmaker Amelia Moses' short film 'Undress me,' and even more so her second directed feature 'Bloodthirsty,' so it seemed only appropriate to also check this out. As low-key as the latter is, this is substantially more so, with a significant portion of the length simply focused on the awkward, somewhat stilted dynamics between the characters. Any abnormalities are stirred in only very quietly, coming and going in soft waves; whether the gradual build is worthwhile, or the payoff it yields, is something each individual viewer may have to decide for themselves. For my part I do like 'Bleed with me,' and I admire the daring of the deeply understated approach Moses takes with the material - but I also understand why it may not find favor with others, and I'm kind of on the fence myself.

Subtlety and nuance and the words of the day, applying to the acting, the dialogue, the interactions between characters, and certainly the overall progression of the course of events. This is echoed as well in the distinctly delicate touch Moses employs as director. Why, even with some instances of heightened emotion or louder sound - including at the climax - the audio itself, including Dominic Caterina's hushed score of ambient themes, follows the same tack. I think the cast perform well under these circumstances, and 'Bleed with me' is well made from a technical standpoint. All this is well and good, either commendable in and of itself or with the choices of how this was made. Still the question remains, though, of how well it serves the story.

I like what Moses has tried to do here, but I don't think the result entirely paid off. For any disquieting imagery, uneasy tension, or bloodletting that may present, there's a certain lack of vibrancy in the slow march of the narrative. The climax itself is the peak of a crescendo, by all means, yet even recognizing the broad slant of the film, I don't think it achieves the desired spark, either. The result is a picture that rather maintains a flat tone with slight blips, and when one steps back and looks at the entirety of the viewing experience, those blips are scarcely detectable.

I wish nothing but the best for Moses and the stars; again, I did quite enjoy 'Bloodthirsty,' and I look forward to seeing what they all go on to do hereafter. As for this feature itself - I don't think it's bad, but it never inspires any particular reaction, and that's the last thing that should ever be said of a work of cinema, let alone the horror genre. This may be most recommendable for the patient and open-minded viewer, and I applaud 'Bleed with me' as a first-time effort. Here's to the sharpening of the blades in the future.