Anatomy of a Love Seen

I am not normally one to write reviews. In fact, I had to create an account just to review this movie. I despised this movie so much that the effort it took to warn others not to waste their money (or time) in order to view this movie was worth it. Let me be clear. I am a lesbian, so I was excited at the prospect of a potentially good/appealing lesbian-focused film. This was not that film. In fact, it was the opposite of a good/appealing movie. The film only has a running time of 80 minutes, and yet there were many points when my partner and I considered turning it off...but kept hoping it would get better. Let me assure you, it does not get better. There is no plot except for shallowness and self-absorption, if you can call that a plot. I don't actually want to spend more time writing about/thinking about this movie, but consider yourselves warned.

Word plays always get an extra point with me ... kidding aside you might have scene it already. Now can filming a movie or just one "simple" scene be harrowing and draining as ... can be? Yes, it is not that you have an inkling how something might go. Especially with relationships developing (devolving) ... and also reshoots can be ... a pain.

Now actors who do a love scene together can fall in love with each other. Actually it is also quite funny when you see how the scene is shot and how not hot at all it is making it (which makes the end result even more amazing). If you expect titilating love scenes all around, you may have the wrong movie anyway. There is nudity and there is ... passion. But that is mostly because of missunderstood things between our two leads here.

If you can't stand the drama, you may not like what is happening on your screen - but it is really well made, even if it feels annoying at times. Life can be the way ... love even more so (complicated)

I have to say that I only watched this film because the film I intended to watch on Netflix had disappeared. and when I did start watching it, I came very close several times in the first 20 minutes to turning it off. But as it went on and I realised more what was happening it grew on me, and in the apparent messiness some very good acting and some very truthful situations emerged. It's a miniature, but a worthwhile one. It's not erotic, except maybe at the very end, but that is not the point; it's about feelings. The sub-plot of the relationship between the director and her assistant is perhaps more convincing than the main plot, and perhaps more interesting.

This movie has a great idea in that it is supposed to be about two young actresses who fall in love for real when they play as lovers in a movie.

But that is not what is advertised. Instead we are told that it is the lesbian love scene itself that actually turns them into lovers. It was why I was reluctant to go and watch. To make the most of the advertised sex scene the movie opens with the scene itself and it is on the cover and in the trailers. Yes, we are promised a hot spicy lesbian love scene that will turn two women into lovers. Two scenes even, for the movie is actually about a reshoot of the first scene. And the effect is more or less the same. You see, that is what lesbian sex does to girls. Perhaps even to straight girls? Parents protect your daughters!

What would be next is a guy who will tell them that a real guy(he himself) will turn them into straight girls again because all they need is some good straight hanky panky to make them see the error of their ways. It never hurts to have a good old straight shag to fix things.

The problem however isn't this misused promise of a lesbian sex scene, but the incredibly slow pace of the movie. You see, the two lovers had a falling out, but darn now they have to reshoot that particular scene! Drama ensues... very slowly. Very very slowly.

It could have been a great movie, but instead we get long slow scenes in which the crew is followed setting up for the scene where such things are discussed as why the wall is missing or that the movie needs to be less heavy. It was probably interesting for the movie crew to see themselves in action but I found it irrelevant for the story and boring to boot.

Even worse however is the bemoanings and recriminations of the two actresses. Like little spoiled brats they have to be talked to by the director all the time to get them to do the bleeding scene. But no, their interpersonal struggles cannot be set aside but have to be addressed and solved right there and then by the director turned relations councilor. Of course, none of the actresses ever thought of taking a friend or otherwise trusted person with them or deal with the thing in a professional or grownup manner. No, no no. We have to see this drama unfold.

If you like very slow drama that has people bemoaning their plight, this is the movie for you. If you instead had hoped to see a movie about a lesbian relation that develops with it's up and downs, as was promised, you might be disappointed by the result. It would have been great to allow people some insight and understanding of lesbians, but this isn't that movie. In fact it wouldn't have interested anyone if this love scene had been a straight one. Making a love scene lesbian does not make a movie less boring or better.

Earlier I read a review that basically warned viewers about this movie but since the Director was so kind as to personally message everyone who queried about the film on Youtube strands and the trailer was done so beautifully, I decided that it was worth the $5 and went ahead and watched it anyway. Now can I just say that this is not a 'typical' movie and if you are a plot based person who gets bored easy and needs the car chase or the lonely montage or any other Hollywood film tricks to fill your 90 minutes, you may not be prepared for this and may even have words as strong as the previous reviewer who claimed that it was slow and self indulgent. But if you can be open to seeing something very different and raw, it is really something unique and special. Realism to me often comes in a slightly art house package, with a slow narrative mimicking reality. You know. Those long look-out-of-the- window-of-a-train sequences or how the film sometimes gets taken over by silence. And somehow, even with a narrative, these films will so often lose me. However, this movie is clever in that it is absolute realism without the extended narrative, in fact, the whole film is set up within a short space of time, literally almost mimicking time itself which absolutely gripped me like I was living those moments with them. The four lead actresses were fantastic and the chemistry between Zoe and Mal was nothing short of Real. I can talk about how great the pace was or the shots but art isn't always meant to be picked apart by its roots. For me, seeing a film that is not dragged down by plot but puts all of its cards on letting a situation and a relationship run its course throughout a difficult day, a film thats core focus is to express just... love, is refreshing and honestly exciting. With this and Blue is The Warmest Colour... I am feeling pretty confident that particularly lesbian relationships are started to be represented well within the film industry. Despite that we were removed from so much of the context and history,I was so emotionally invested because it wasn't about exposition and it wasn't about knowing, it relied on feeling. That in-the-middle-of-a-complicated-break-up-and-now-I-don't-know-how- to-function feeling that leaves us completely vulnerable and if you've never had anything like that or never felt sick when you're around a person, like your body doesn't feel like its you anymore or you've never had a first fight or a last fight or a relationship ultimatum moment or you've never stopped yourself before you risk getting hurt, then maybe, just maybe you might be like meh, a film about love with no plot. Otherwise, this is a gem and you will not be sorry for putting money into this film. Commendation to the team!