A24’s “Love Lies Bleeding,” our top new release to stream this week, is more of an Independent Spirit Awards contender than an Academy Awards contender. Watch out for Kristen Stewart in Best Lead Performance and, especially, Katy O’Brian for Best Breakthrough Performance for her work as unstable, steroid-abusing bodybuilder Jackie Cleaver. But there is one Oscar category that “Love Lies Bleeding” should win with extreme prejudice: Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Hair department head Megan Daum came up with the widest variety of mullets ever put on film. Ed Harris somehow has a bald mullet. It’s incredible.
“Love Lies Bleeding” is a romantic crime thriller from director Rose Glass. Gym manager Lou (Stewart) and itinerant bodybuilder Jackie (O’Brian) meet and fall in love, but there are many threats to their relationship, including Lou’s slimy brother-in-law JJ (Dave Franco) and dangerous crime boss father Lou Sr. (Harris). If they want to be free, Lou and Jackie will have to do some unsavory things. It’s a cool movie that can be described using cinephiles’ two favorite adjectives, “noirish” and “Lynchian.” It’s now streaming on Max.
Here are some other movies to stream this weekend:
“The Teacher’s Lounge”: Not a current awards contender but a past one; this potent drama from Germany was nominated for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards (it lost to “The Zone of Interest”). It’s about an idealistic middle school teacher (Leonie Benesch) whose well-meaning approach to dealing with a rash of thefts from the school’s teacher’s lounge leads to a breakdown of order. It’s an intelligent allegorical film that viewers in very many countries will find relevant to their political situations. It’s now streaming on Netflix.
“Young Woman and the Sea”: Daisy Ridley stars in this inspirational sports drama about Trudy Ederle, the first woman to swim across the English Channel, which she did in 1926. After a limited theatrical release, the film is now on Disney+, timed to the start of the Olympics and the 100th anniversary of Ederle winning bronze medals the last time the games were held in Paris.
“Land of Bad”: This war thriller stars Liam Hemsworth as a soldier who ends up alone behind enemy lines and Academy Award winner Russell Crowe as a Reaper drone operator trying to guide him to safety. It’s a simple premise that’s executed well. The cast also includes Luke Hemsworth and Milo Ventimiglia. After a low-key theatrical run, it’s now available to stream on Netflix.
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