A shocking fable about the inevitability—and necessity—of death
Movie
United Kingdom, United States of America
English
Drama, Fantasy
2023
DAINA ONIUNAS-PUSIĆ, FEMALE DIRECTOR
Arinzé Kene, Ellie James, Ewens Abid
111 min
TLDR
If Death comes in the form of a sarcastic, hip-hop-loving, vape-smoking macaw, then maybe I won’t be too scared of it too.
What it's about
When Death visits terminally-ill, 15-year-old Tuesday (Lola Petticrew), they form an unexpected bond that infuriates Tuesday’s mother, Zora (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who tries to stop the reaper at all costs.
The take
Death often gets a bad rep in movies. When The Grim Reaper comes for the main character, they usually try to run away from it or steer clear of the light. But in Tuesday, Death is a welcome warm embrace. According to the immortal being, who appears as a hip-hop-loving macaw here, most people even beg for the absolute relief of it. Tuesday is like a modern-day fable in how it teaches us how to appreciate mortality and finality, as odd as that may sound. Indeed, it should be exhausting to be exposed to this much morbidity, but Tuesday has a way of honoring the end of a person’s life in creative and shocking ways. It’s also, refreshingly, unsentimental about it, a feat bolstered by its smart script and impressive all-around performances.
What stands out
Unsurprisingly, Julia Louis-Dreyfus will make you cry more than once.