It's during a term studying animal euthanasia that veterinary student Rose (Ann Skelly) decides to contact Ellen (Orla Brady), the birth mother who gave her up for adoption. But Ellen, who is now a successful London-based actress, doesn't want to know. Undeterred, Rose will not be ignored. And curiosity leads her to discoveries that shake the fragile identity she has built for herself. Directors Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor, also known as Desperate Optimists, have spent ye... (Full plot summary below)
Enjoy FREE movies and series with your Prime (USA) subscription or when you start a 30-day free trial!
Sorry, we can't find any suggestions at the moment.
It's during a term studying animal euthanasia that veterinary student Rose (Ann Skelly) decides to contact Ellen (Orla Brady), the birth mother who gave her up for adoption. But Ellen, who is now a successful London-based actress, doesn't want to know. Undeterred, Rose will not be ignored. And curiosity leads her to discoveries that shake the fragile identity she has built for herself. Directors Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor, also known as Desperate Optimists, have spent years making formally rigorous, atmospheric cinema that often deals with the uncanny effects of impersonation and the slippery nature of truth. With Rose Plays Julie (2019) hey have crafted a slow-burn thriller that builds a sense of dread inside an exquisite world of immaculate architecture, rendered through an icy performance style and enveloped by a claustrophobic soundtrack. Ann Skelly and Orla Brady are both exacting and measured in their delivery, as the film takes us through longing and revenge to arrive at the dark places of power and its abuses. This is frank, immersive and decidedly feminist filmmaking.
Leave your thoughts about Rose Plays Julie.
| CineVueMartyn ConterioIts emotional dilemmas, depictions of trauma, revenge and fractured family ties are handled with such skill and sense of purpose, it is truly exemplary film-making. |
| VarietyJessica KiangThe most disturbing thing about the impressively disturbing Rose Plays Julie may just be how satisfying it is. |
| RogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyRose Plays Julie is very controlled in its style: this control reaps huge rewards. |
| Los Angeles TimesSarah-Tai BlackA deeply aware film, Rose Plays Julie allows for the fantastic as a means and space of catharsis. |
| The Film StageJared MobarakGet ready for a tense ride because writers/directors Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor’s Rose Plays Julie never relinquishes its sense of brooding until the very last frame’s welcome exhale of relief. |
| The Observer (UK)Mark KermodeThere’s a strong element of Greek tragedy underpinning Rose Plays Julie. |
| Original-CinThom ErnstThe film is strong enough in performance and direction to survive any discrepancies between the social drama it begins as with the revenge thriller it becomes. Still, Rose Plays Julie's sudden turn of events feels like an intrusion on a better story. |
| Movie NationRoger MooreThe story’s direction becomes deflatingly predictable once all the various characters and plot elements are set up. But Rose Plays Julie is a psychological thriller where pathos, suspense and the silent confusion of our heroine compete for primacy. Start to finish, this is damned unsettling. |
| Screen DailyNikki BaughanLayering its fairly straightforward story of an adopted Irish girl who tracks down her birth mother with immersive visual and aural motifs, it plays more like modern operatic tragedy than run-of-the-mill social drama. |
| The GuardianPeter BradshawIt is a really powerful film and Brady’s final dialogue scene exerts a lethal grip. |
