With the Oscars put back to April, most of the big awards contenders have not been released here yet. However, Netflix continue to put out films that could be in the running. After Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Midnight Sky in the last few weeks, we now have Pieces of a Woman.
Martha (Vanessa Kirby) and her husband Sean (Shia LaBeouf) want to have their first child at home. They seem unconcerned when their midwife cannot make the birth and is replaced by Eva (Molly Parker), but when things go horribly wrong, the finger of suspicion points at Eva. Over the next year, leading up to a court case, unbearable pressure is put on Sean and Martha’s marriage as they try to deal with their loss.
This is director Kornel Mundruczo’s English language debut, and, as with his superior White God, the film has an outstanding female lead performance. Ellen Burstyn as Martha’s mother is also excellent and the punchy and unremitting first act makes compelling viewing. But from then on the film loses both focus and impetus. The characters are not really fleshed out beyond the tragedy that defines them, and Kata Weber’s script feels both over written and under developed.
Kirby and Burstyn may well feature in the awards race but I will be surprised if this film makes much of an impression otherwise.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10