She dies tomorrow is the new film by writer / director Amy Seimetz. Her work behind the scenes got the biggest platform on Starz’s The girlfriend experience but this is her second film after Sun does not shine. Seimetz is also a major player on the indie scene as an actor. Her latest film is ambiguous and open to interpretation. It’s art, man.
‘She dies tomorrow,’ or does she?
Amy (Kate Lyn Sheil) is plagued by the overwhelming certainty that she will die tomorrow. Jane (Jane Adams) tries to talk her down, but Jane comes away feeling that she is now on her last day as well. When she sees her brother, Jason (Chris Messina), the feeling spreads to him as well.
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This type of infectious direct mortality could represent something different for the viewer. It does not seem like we are dealing with a really fatal pandemic and Seimetz leaves it entirely to the viewer. The movie also covers more than one day, so “tomorrow” is loose. There are flashbacks, so the timeline gets complicated, but it’s still more than a day.
Amy Seimetz delivers several responses to imminent death
The provocative joy of She dies tomorrow is the way in which every character, and actor, interprets the feeling of death. Sheil’s body language running around house, standing outside in the open air, is a kind of interpretive dance, except it is not performative. She is still someone at home who just behaves like her.
Each character recognizes a little differently about their tragic death, and exposes their feelings in their body language. Where Amy is isolated, Jane becomes needy and sticky, and she also shares everyone’s darkest thoughts. Jason is married to Susan (Katie Aselton), so has another reaction that includes his own immediate family.
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Seimetz provides visual and auditory clues to the spread of this feeling as well. Each character sees blue and red flashing lights, which can be a lot to take for the viewer. An oppressive hum also spreads to each character.
What does ‘She Dies Tomorrow’ mean? Amy Seimetz will not tell.
Well, it is certainly the point of an abstract art film not to give concrete answers to the viewer. One could take it literally and consider the story as a bunch of people forced to evaluate their lives at the last minute. That would be gripping and compelling.
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One could also see “death” as a transition, as the end of something meaningful, as a rebirth, or just an uncertainty that anyone could have about big or small questions. Seimetz leaves room for the viewer to bring their own baggage to the characters, but directs with a self-conscious visual style. The camera stays attached to each character with their thoughts until it breaks them visually and auditorially for the viewer.
She dies tomorrow is also as intense as it sounds. The downside to this may be that people are already so beautiful that they are not looking for more fear. The upside may be that people are already so scared that they are prime to think about She dies tomorrow. If it sounds like a valuable experience from the above description, Seimetz, Sheil, Adams, Messina and more provide a provocative art film for these times.
