Premise: A lonely woman in a small town begins dating a new coworker.
As I watched this movie with friends, I repeatedly pointed out how aspects of this reminded me of Stranger Than Fiction. For me, there is no higher praise. I am a person who has trouble opening up and gets set in my ways, so characters like Daisy Ridley's Fran really speak to me. Even the bits of darkness that she's afraid to reveal. I think Ridley is incredible in this movie. It is a restrained performance. I really didn't think she could go this small. Just as good is Dave Merheje as Robert, the potential love interest. He's just very good as a nice guy. Outgoing but not overbearing.
What I love most about this movie is the dance as Fran and Robert feel each other out. Neither speaks a language the other can understand. Robert is someone who can befriend anyone, so his advances look indistinguishable from being a friendly guy. Fran, on the other hand, gives you nothing in her responses. While something like making a joke in the office instant messenger is huge for her, you'd have to know her really well already to understand that. It's frustrating in a good way as a viewer to see the fight they get into and know how much it would be resolved by just knowing each other a little better.
The title comes from Fran's recurring habit of imagining ways that something could kill her. The one drawback to the movie is that it doesn't find a way to make that more than a character quirk. It could be removed without damaging anything that I loved about the movie. I didn't hate the inclusion of it. It just felt extraneous. There is a part of me that thinks it could turn into a weird inside joke in their relationship. A lot like Michelle Williams and Seth Rogen joking about how they'd kill each other in Take This Waltz.
So now I'm comparing this to Stranger Than Fiction AND Take This Waltz. I really must've loved it.
Verdict: Strongly Recommend
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