The Place For The Latest Movie Reviews
Cast: Jeffrey Combs (Re-Animator, The Frighteners, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Shannon Beeby (Orange is the New Black, New Amsterdam), Ryan Jonze (The Blacklist, When They See Us), Erin Way (The Handmaid's Tale, Save the Date)
Director: Martin Melnick
Ten years ago, Lilly (Shannon Beeby) suffered the most painful tragedy that could befall any mother: the sudden death of her young daughter. Over the last decade, the trauma of losing her child has collided with dark memories of a similarly painful childhood of her own, turning her current life into a mess of psychological torment and the occasional meaningless hookup, the latter meant to fill the giant hole in her heart.
Her latest hookup, Jed (Ryan Jonze), enters Lilly’s world at a particularly trying time, with the 10-year anniversary of her daughter’s death triggering a downward spiral of alcohol and pills. There are also the hallucinations she can’t shake, which could stem from her deteriorating mental state but may also be coming from something much more dangerous, something supernatural. As Lilly struggles to cope with everything, the ghosts of her past strengthen their grip, leading to unspeakable horrors.
Lilly lost her child ten years ago and did not have a good childhood of her own, so over the years she has suffered mentally. Using prescription drugs and alcohol to try and mask the emotional pain, Lilly begins to lose control when she starts seeing and hearing things no matter where she goes. When not working, she spends her time in her home and only has one true friend and a man, Jed, who comes over mostly for sex. Lilly's mind is a fragile thing, and it is hard to tell if what she hears and sees is real or a product of her mental state. Everyone that knows her is considered and even her neighbors are interested in what is going on in the house. As time goes by, Lilly's condition begins to deteriorate, leading to a horrific ending.
''Lilly Lives Alone' is a Psychological Horror that gets your attention right from the start, and you remain engaged the entire time. The way the writer/director tells his story with things happening that will leave you wondering what is going on, but by the time the end comes, it all comes together in a thoughtful and horrific way. You really feel for Lilly, who is suffering so much sorrow, pain and guilt, and a lot of the credit for that is the performance of Shannon Beeby, who plays lilly. She hopefully gains a lot more starring roles after giving a stellar performance. The rest of the cast, including the great Jeffrey Combs, Erin Way and Kent Shocknek, are all terrific as well.
'Lilly Lives Alone' is an example of why Independent Cinema is so good. The film keeps you guessing and weaves a dark mystery, yet you cannot take your eyes off it and in the end you are left thinking about it long after. The film will be in theaters and on vod 8/22/2025. I highly recommend checking it out.
Released by Dark Sky Films
**** Out Of *****