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| Release: 2011, Rated: R, Runtime: 99 min. |
Newlyweds Tim and Molly move back into Molly’s deceased parents house and not too long into their stay, strange noises start happening at night and Molly slowly inches herself towards insanity. Is the haunting experiences all part of Molly’s awful drug addiction? Or are the things that are going bump in the night really out to get her? Lovely Molly certainly has you in a strong grip for a majority of the film, leaving you guessing every turn, but is a quirky, twisty and often suspenseful plot enough? Read on to find out…
Short nitty-gritty plot description from IMDb is as follows: Newlywed Molly moves into her deceased father’s house in the countryside, where painful memories soon begin to haunt her.
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| Oh Johnny Lewis, how normal you looked, before going insane and killing someone |
Let’s see how well I can explain Lovely Molly, without ruining the mystique of what it has to offer. As already mentioned, Tim and Molly have moved into her parent’s old house and after 3 months of marital bliss, the couple are awoken to the blaring sound of the house alarm and the banging sounds of someone downstairs. After some investigation, it looks to be just a door left ajar, but Tim insists that he locked it. The next day, we learn that Tim is a truck driver and often leaves for several days on end, leaving poor Molly home alone. One gruelling week away from her husband, is all it takes for Molly to fall back into old habits and with those old habits, come even worse experiences, some which cannot be fully explained. Bit by bit, Molly’s psyche is chipped away, until we are left with a fragile and unstable girl, pleading for help, but no one to listen to her, except for the mysterious unseen force that is haunting her. Is Molly’s haunting a product of narcotics, or is something more… unreal?
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| Things are slowly starting to crack for Molly. |
Lovely Molly is like a tightly wound coil, ready to snap at any moment. The tension is ratcheted up to eleven and situations become more and more surreal as the time Molly spends alone continues. The movie doesn’t specifically say one way or the other if what’s happening is really supernatural or not, but it does lend itself heavily near the end to that matter. I won’t say one way or the other what I believe actually happened, lest I spoil the entire damn thing. However, I should give you fair warning that the plot will definitely leave with a disjointed feeling and it will be up to you whether you can see this as a disadvantage or not. As for me, I saw it as something surreal or unsettling and has stuck with me long after watching. Something else that stuck with me, was the unnerving music by Tortoise. A mix of sounds and frequencies, the music is low key, haunting and becomes a character itself.
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| There are several nudes scenes involving Molly, but none are erotic. Trust me. |
Lovely Molly as film is entirely hinged on the performance of it’s leading lady. Gretchen Lodge, does a superb job as Molly, going from sweet and gentle at the beginning of film, before tumbling down the rabbit hole into a dark despair. Amazing performance is all that can be said for Gretchen Lodge, truly amazing. As for the others, which are few, we have Johnny Lewis as the husband, Tim. He does a pretty good job, with what little is given to him (remember this is a film about Molly, not Tim, or else it would be called Lovely Tim, which honestly would be a completely different kind of film). Rounding out the small cast is Alexandra Holden, as Molly’s sister, Hannah. Once again, her role is limited, but her performance is above par. All around, the film is certainly not lacking in the acting category.
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| An insane scene that will make your stomach turn. |
Lovely Molly is different, different in a good way mind you. The story is most certainly disjointed and all over the place, yet feels fitting. This is a ride, and the driver is Molly and as a passenger, the only thing you can do, is witness the downward spiral of poor Molly and hopefully after the credits role, the film sticks with you as it did for me. I recommend Lovely Molly and hope you will feel the same way as I did.
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