Bleeding Heart

Getting into trouble for lending a hand to only family. It was actually a better film than I thought. But it should have been even better. Written and directed by a woman filmmaker and that revolves around two women. When a Yoga instructor makes contact with her sister for the first time since coming to know her existence, does not go well. At first, it was casual, but after observing her closely, she offers help in any way possible. That's when all the trouble comes out and the remaining film is to reveal how the tale concludes. For a small film like this, including its short runtime, this film does not look boring. I said that because of the concept that you might feel familiar. There are twists and turns, yet most of the film is predictable, but not bad for watching it once. The cast, particularly Jessica Biel looked good, but the other woman contributed in the performance section. Started off like a drama, but ends with thriller. The film is not for everyone. Those who don't watch films regularly might find it interesting than film critics and film fanatics. 6/10

Sketchy pacing and inconsistent narrative hamper its well-intended message, even though the sisterhood vibe by the two leads is lovely. Family tie is a good hook for drama, especially if the two main characters are pretty endearing. The cast, albeit small, perform admirably to set strangely surreal characters. However, this is a simple story told in excessively cumbersome way, the slow pace and mundane script prevent any excitement from the first half, and even when it looks like it would gain momentum, it doesn't end up in satisfying conclusion. May (Jessica Biel) finds her long lost sister Shiva (Zosia Mamet), but their lives are world apart. It's basically the entire premise and there are not many twists or shocking developments. What the movie does well is presenting these two sisters with modesty. Jessica Biel and Zosia Mamet look the part of siblings, they also have a good on-screen connection. Their relationship is heart-warming and even thought-provoking at times. However, the movie takes a very sluggish approach. This may necessary to build up characters, yet the scenes tend to get tedious early on. Some interactions feel repetitive, such as the sisters' banters, which might be adorable but it can be quite overused, the abusive boyfriend who constantly bullies them and shallow use of alternative life style. It needs about one hour to get the momentum rolling, and it's still imperfect then. Edi Gathegi and Joe Anderson play the male supporting characters, they do a presentable job considering their personalities are not as deep as the sisters. This is a drama through and through, it may turn into thriller slightly, although it doesn't know what to do when it gets there. The theme of violence or **** could be used more thoroughly instead of being another uncomfortable gimmick. It only partially succeeds in displaying female empowerment. There's a delightful drama at heart with the sisters, yet the extremely sloppy pace and one dimensional direction only amount to mediocre showing.

This is an upper-class, white female writer/director's fantasy of saving another woman from victimhood as a prostitute, from her comfortable perch as a yoga instructor. Politically correct cliches stand in for any kind of real understanding of the subject matter (pimps and prostitutes, domestic violence and abuse, etc.) Not even a nice try for an indie film. Sometimes passable acting cannot save this movie from itself, from its horrible script and directing. But Jessica Biel looks great, hence this gets a 1/10 for that only.