Well that sure was… something!

“Die My Love” follows a new mother (Jennifer Lawrence) who seems to slowly slip into madness alongside her husband (Robert Pattinson) in their isolated Montana home. Nick Nolte, Lakeith Stanfield, and Sissy Spacek also star, while Lynne Ramsay directs.

2025 has been a pretty darn good year for movies but it also has several common themes, including weird date night movies and criticizing the idea of traditional domestic life. “Die My Love” is a tornado of a film, throwing a lot of imagery and themes at the viewer, usually without much coherence, and it’s easy to see why someone would absolutely loathe it. However I found myself pretty entertained by the chaos, and it’s fun to see two of the biggest names to come out of the 2010s YA craze in adult roles.

While I think she’s talented, I’ve never jumped on the Jennifer Lawrence bandwagon (I think her Oscar win for “Silver Linings” and subsequent Meryl Streep-esque “let’s nominate for simply for appearing in a film!” run in the 2010s was one of the oddest things of the decade). Still, it’s fun to see her in recent years do roles she clearly always wanted to do (she has exclusively made R-rated films since “Hunger Games” and “X-Men” run), and she gets to let her freak flag fly here. As Grace, a new mother, Lawrence depicts the stress, and at times apathetic nature, of postpartum depression, whether it’s barking back at a yelping dog when you’re trying to have a moment of peace, or ignoring a mess your baby made because you just got done cleaning another up.

Partnered with Robert Pattinson, who is known for his roles in “Twilight” and more recently “The Batman,” Lawrence has some entertaining moments of yelling, dancing, crawling, and fighting, as each tries to over-act the other (in a good way). Pattinson gets to use a few of his goofy voices he’s also become associated with, and whenever the pair of them share a scene it’s a lot of fun.

Now, the film is weird, and at times makes little to no sense. It is a full-on attack on the senses, and a lot of the time it’s hard to make out the what or the why things are happening. People dance naked, hit their heads on walls, and walk through a burning forest; these kinds of films are always divisive, and even for me only work half the time. It’s easy to become frustrated or lost, but at the same time if you just vibe with things then it can be engaging. There is barely a plot, just a series of vignettes stitched together, and to some that may not be enough. It took me a while to realize the narrative vibe the film was going for, and I do wish the film was a little more streamlined, but if you go in knowing that this is more of a character piece than a rich story you should be fine. 

I think the film offers several clever insights into how the world views parenthood and spousal neglect, especially for mothers, and after years of Hollywood selling the idea of having kids as a perfect blessing and simply an expected next step for couples, recently ones have shown the stressful and demanding side of things (like this year’s “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” in which Rose Byrne is fantastic). I’m not a parent so I can’t fully appreciate everything being said or depicted, but I’m sure Lawrence put some of her own experiences into the role and it will be appreciated by young mothers (or even older ones, who for years felt they had to be silent about their struggles raising babies).

“Die My Love” will not be for everyone, but it offers two talented actors opportunities to be weird and bounce off one another. Some of the visuals are very striking, and I think for being a film where largely “nothing happens” it moves along well. I’m not sure how long this will stay in my memory or if I’ll even ever watch it again, but as far as in-the-moment viewings go, no one can accuse this one of being boring.

Critics Rating: 7/10