[Film Review] Bleed With Me (2020)

How does it feel to be in a position to help others? How does it feel when you need to accept help? For some, offering help is a way of showing love, but accepting help feels worse. In healthy relationships there is give-and-take, and all parties help each other from time to time.

Empathy is the ability to understand and share feelings with another person. Hurting with someone who hurts, or bleeding with someone who bleeds, is the ultimate show of empathy. In Bleed With Me (2020), written and directed by Amelia Moses, what it means to give or receive help is explored through a romantic relationship and a friendship. 

My recommendation is go into this movie knowing as little about it as possible, and let it take you along. The mystery is part of the fun.

Rowan (Lee Marshall), Emily (Lauren Beatty), and Brendan (Aris Tyros) are away for a vacation at Emily’s family’s cabin in the snowy woods. Emily and Brendan are a couple, and Rowan is the shy, quiet third wheel. Rowan and Emily are friends from work, but have only worked together for about six months. They seem awfully familiar for work friends who haven’t known each other long. On the first night, Rowan has too much to drink, and while putting her to bed, Brendan expresses concern to Emily, saying he wishes it was just the two of them for the weekend. But Emily insists Rowan should stay. Rowan starts to experience strange things, unsure if she is asleep or awake, and waking up with cuts on her arms. From there, things only get stranger. The audience follows Rowan’s point of view, but she is a bit of an unreliable narrator. 

The heart of the film is the relationship between the two female friends, Rowan and Emily, who are expertly juxtaposed. They are notably different from one another, in actions and appearance. Rowan is reserved and mousy, while Emily is assertive and self-assured. Rowan’s hair is usually covering her face, and she wears baggy sweaters in neutral colors. Emily has a perfectly straight blond bob, and even though she is vacationing in the woods, she wears button-down blouses and slacks more fit for an office setting. Rowan clearly admires Emily, and her relationship with Brendan. The audience is often over Rowan’s shoulder watching the couple. Usually it’s an innocent lingering look across the room, but it escalates to more private moments. It seems like Rowan is studying the couple, observing them in their habitat. 

Rowan defers to Emily frequently and does whatever she says. She gets too drunk because Emily keeps filling her glass, and Rowan takes medicine she doesn’t want because Emily insists. It can be uncomfortable to watch. Emily talks down to Rowan, using phrases like “good girl” and “all better.” She is almost constantly doting on Rowan, bringing her things and checking on her. More than once I wanted to shout at the screen, “Stand up for yourself! Make your own choices!” Throughout the film, I was wondering, “What is this friendship? What is either of them getting out of it? Why are they acting so close but don’t seem to know each other at all?” Rowan thinks that by doing what Emily says, she can be happy like Emily. 

They are only ever in the cabin or the surrounding woods, and the single location makes the film feel claustrophobic in the best way. It’s a quiet movie that takes its time. There are lingering shots that last just long enough to be uncomfortable, and stretches of time without dialogue. This film surprised me and stuck with me. If you’re in the mood for a slow burn that will sneak up on you, give it a try. 

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