Starring real-life father-daughter duo Ewan McGregor and Clara Mathilde McGregor, Bleeding Love follows the road trip of an estranged father and daughter following the daughter’s near-fatal overdose.
★★★☆☆
From its opening sunlight-scattered shot of Clara McGregor’s face, juxtaposed with the obnoxious soundtrack of GRLwood’s ‘I’m Yer Dad’, Bleeding Love presents a dichotomy of experience. We are faced with a loving and often playful father-daughter relationship, coupled with insights into the internal struggles both face with addiction and abandonment. The debut film from production company Deux Dames Entertainment (co-owned by Clara McGregor and New-York-based actor/producer Vera Bulder), it’s a vulnerable insight into a flawed relationship.
Beginning 12 hours after the daughter’s overdose, Bleeding Love tracks the two central characters on a 14-hour road trip through Southwest America to Santa Fe. Along the journey, the estranged pair gradually begin to open up to each other, aided by the myriad of eccentric characters they meet along the way. From a prostitute with dreams of Broadway (Vera Bulder) to a clown on parole (Jake Weary), the film embodies hope, searching for glimmers of good amongst a backdrop of difficulty and peril.
First-time director Emma Westenberg crafts a distinctly beautiful film, using natural sunlight and sunsets throughout the car scenes to create a sense of hopefulness and optimism. In long camera shots, the memorable turquoise jeep driven by the father contrasts pleasingly with the vast expanse of desert surrounding it. Aside from those sequences the film primarily uses close ups camera shots, subtly highlighting the characters’ forced closeness during the trip. They also invite the audience into the car, creating a sense of intimacy and encouraging viewers to connect with them.
Interspersed with the road trip are flashbacks of the father and daughter years ago, with Devyn McDowell giving a convincing performance as a younger version of the daughter. These scenes delve into the generational addiction issues within the family and provide a backstory for the pair’s estrangement. Whilst the flashbacks are effective, it would have been interesting for the daughter’s addiction to be explored in more depth; little is shown about her adolescence or the onset of her illness.
However, both Ewan and Clara McGregor portray the characters brilliantly; their performances are gritty, raw, and intimate. Having the characters depicted by a real father and daughter works excellently, bringing depth and nuance to their relationship. This authenticity is emphasised with an all-too-familiar scene in which the pair belt out Leona Lewis’ ‘Bleeding Love’, a sweet moment inspired by Ewan and Clara’s real life bond.
Despite the sensitive topics covered, Bleeding Love successfully sprinkles moments of humour into the plot. The film’s ability to create instances of genuine comedy whilst telling an otherwise emotional story is impressive, creating an optimism that shifts the film from solely dramatic in genre to a relatively feel-good watch. The writers (Ruby Caster, Clara McGregor and Vera Bulder) are particularly adept at incorporating offbeat one-liners that lighten up the film’s darker storyline at just the right moments; Vera Bulder provides a standout comic performance, as does Kim Zimmer as car mechanic Elsie.
The Verdict
With strong performances, beautiful visuals and a hint of absurdist comedy, Bleeding Love is an intimate glimpse into the impact of addiction on a father-daughter relationship. Clara McGregor holds her own sharing the screen with her father; her performance is vulnerable and feels incredibly realistic. Whilst the film could have delved deeper into the roots of the characters’ issues, the plot is interesting and ultimately reaches a satisfying (although arguably predictable) conclusion. The humour and optimistic undertone of the film leaves viewers feeling hopeful as the credits roll.
Words by Verity Alice Cartwright.
Bleeding Love will be in UK cinemas from 12 April.
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