Film Review: She Dies Tomorrow

If I could pick one movie to represent the utterly ridiculous and apocalyptic chaos that is 2020, I can’t imagine any movie that would be more suitable than the new picture from Amy Seimetz, She Dies Tomorrow. The plot itself is very simple, and it’s all there right in the title. We meet Amy (Kate Lyn Sheil), a seemingly healthy young woman suddenly comes to a “realization” that she will die tomorrow. There are no details beyond that, just the overwhelming feeling of impending doom, and just before it seems like things might seem to get tedious, that feeling soon spreads to others.

First, it’s Jane (Jane Adams), Amy’s friend, who comes over to check up on her. As you’d expect, she doesn’t take Amy’s claims seriously, worrying that she has relapsed. Amy assures her that this isn’t her relapsing, though she immediately follows it with “Well, I did have a drink, so that technically counts as relapsing.” Jane eventually leaves, but as the night continues, she begins to experience that feeling too. Amy now won’t return her calls, so she instead turns to her brother, Jason (Chris Messina), who is holding a small birthday party for his wife, Susan (Katie Aselton), where things only escalate.

If all that sounds absurd, the film is certainly aware of that. There is a darkly comedic undercurrent that runs through the whole thing. I wouldn’t call it a knee-slapper by any means, but there are some uncomfortable laughs to be had. The repeated use of “Lacrymosa” from Mozart’s Requiem In D Minor is an amusing touch. Seimetz fully acknowledge the ludicrousness and comedic potential of the idea, while also balancing it with a sense of dread and tension, which keeps the film in a heavy atmosphere, which is accentuated by the foreboding score by Mondo Boys and Jay Keitel’s cinematography, which contrasts mundane environments with expressive flourishes of colors. It’s a tricky tonal line to walk, and on that level, the film succeeds quite well.

The real core of the film is how it showcases the various characters reactions to the feeling, especially as they encounter of people throughout the film, both who have it and don’t. Some accept it, and even joke about it. Others are more fearful, resistant, mournful. It brings a fascinating dynamic to the story that once again does a good job of balancing its humanity with its notes of bitter humor, leading to some really memorable line deliveries and moments between characters. Even if some of its thematic gestures do occasionally feel a bit too broad and thinly stretched.

The performances are strong across the board. Kate Lyn Sheil sells the inherent strangeness incredibly well, putting you in the weird headspace, even though you don’t quite get a full understanding of what exactly is going on. Jane Adams is the only other performer who gets a lot to work with, showing the transition from skeptic to infected. Messina and Aselton are also wonderful, along with some effective but all too brief appearances from folks like Adam Wingard, Michelle Rodriguez, Tunde Adebimpe, Jennifer Kim, and Josh Lucas.

I don’t know how much audiences will have an appetite for a movie about the sense of doom, the shared fear and paranoia between people, and a sickness being passed from one person to another, but there is a lot to like and admire about She Dies Tomorrow. Amy Seimetz has always been a reliable actress, but with her relatively small body of work behind the camera with her debut feature, Sun Don’t Shine, and her work on the first season of The Girlfriend Experience, she has proven to be a distinctive voice. She Dies Tomorrow tackles big, heavy ideas in ways that are modest in their scope, but ultimately effective and very idiosyncratic. While some might find its lack of concrete answers frustrating, the whole ride is engaging enough to keep you watching. How this film would come across had it been released in a year that wasn’t as wild as 2020, I’m not sure, but even if unintended, it provides a thoughtful and entertaining snapshot of the feeling of our current moment.

She Dies Tomorrow is now out in select drive-ins and VOD platforms.