Lola (2024)
★
This review may contain spoilers.
The set decoration is great—everything feels period-accurate and visually interesting, from the houses and yards to the rooms inside. The contemplative tone and slow, quiet nature of the film are really nice, even though it doesn’t always deliver on what it’s trying to say.
Madeline Leach, the cinematographer, absolutely kills it. There are so many standout shots: the security mirror, the wide shot of them sitting on the bed that’s slightly askew, the frame where 20% of her face is visible after Malachi leaves, and the wall shot with the shadows and the horse. These are dynamic and intentional choices that elevate the visuals, even when the story falters.
Some scenes needed more time to land emotionally—like the choking scene, which feels rushed. The score works well overall, with a haunting droning quality that helps set the mood, though I can’t help but think a church organ would have gone so hard, especially since the film wants to explore faith and religion.
The acting, though, is rough. It’s hard to connect to the characters because of how flat and uninspired the performances feel. Even big moments, like Lola screaming “yOUu kILlLEd hIIM,” just don’t work. The wardrobe is a plus, though—it fits the tone perfectly.
Structurally, the film struggles. Bad things just keep happening in a way that feels like checking off a list rather than organically unfolding. There’s a lack of balance here—everything is so heavy, and there are no moments of levity or hope to break it up. The theme of second chances, for example, could have been explored through her ex, but it never gets the attention it deserves.
Thematically, the film touches on religion, trauma, and grief, but it doesn’t really say much. Mona’s character is particularly underdeveloped, coming across as a one-dimensional antagonist rather than someone with real depth. Her bigotry is simplified, and moments that could explore her faith or her own trauma—like when she says, “I said the same thing when I was pregnant with you”—feel wasted. Lola’s character has similar issues. Lines like “you can’t hurt me anymore, Mona, and I’m gonna spend the rest of my life loving my kid” are powerful, but we never see the struggles or growth that give them weight.
There are good ideas here—lines like “we all go through fucked up stuff but we are not born fucked up” and “I used to think that I didn’t deserve a second chance” beg for deeper exploration. But instead of diving into those ideas, the film stays on the surface, leaving so much potential untapped.
notes below
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- I like the set dec.
- I like the contemplative nature of this, the tone that they are going for, the slow and quiet nature of it.
- Like this shot of them through the security mirror.
- oh no the acting is not good oh no.
- I like the shot of them sitting in bed when it cuts to a wide, it's slight askew, very nice.
- I feel like we should have lingered longer on that scene where she was getting chocked? like we didn't hold long enough on the actions or things that were being done.
- that shot where like 20% of her face is in frame after Malachi leaves was really cool
- like the shot where she was sitting against the wall; half the shadows are there with the cool horse.
- Madeline Leach the cinematographer is killing it, some really nice dynamic shots.
- a church organ would have gone so hard in the soundtrack why wasn't that in here at all, the film wants to grapple with faith
- I like the thought of the theme of second chances being explore through her ex but we don't see it at all explore in any nice or inspiring way so that sucks.
- the film clearly wants to grapple with faith and religion and say something about it but it has yet to say anything about it, challenge those ideals?
- also this scene where the mom shaves the head is haunting and the score really sells it.
- okay I did not see the car coming.
- feeling a structure issues we have a lot of stuff hitting us at once but these things are just kind of happening as if it's like were crossing off a checklist of bad things that could happen to someone
- the droning in the soundtrack is nice, like a more pleasant ringing in the ears, haunting moment, soundtrack is doing a lot of heavy lifting.
- "yOUu kILlLEd hIIM" - Lola 2024
- I do like the wardrobe for the film.
-Mona’s character seems written to embody textbook antagonism rather than a fully realized human being. "you just wait till your precious little baby grows up to be something you find disgusting," come across as harsh and simplistic. While this moment highlights her prejudice, the film misses an opportunity to explore why she holds these beliefs. For a story dealing with themes of religion, trauma, and familial conflict, Mona’s perspective should have been better fleshed out. It's not about justifying her actions or sympathizing with her bigotry but understanding her motivations the film should delve into how her faith shapes her worldview Is Mona acting out of genuine confusion, fear, or ignorance, or is she simply cruel? Instead of making Mona a one-dimensional figure of disapproval, the story could have explored how her own trauma or upbringing influenced her beliefs, creating a more complex and layered character. which seems like what the film is going for, there is a line where she says "I said the same thing when I was pregnant with you and this feels like a line calling for interaction, for understanding but ultimately it falls flat.
- Lola's character suffers from the same one-dimensional treatment as Mona. She’s portrayed as a stripper who uses drugs and feels unloved by her family, but the film doesn’t dive deeper into why she feels this way or how her experiences have shaped her. Lines like "you can't hurt me anymore, Mona, and I am gonna spend the entire rest of my life loving my kid" are powerful on the surface, but they lack the emotional grounding needed to resonate. We don’t see the nuanced struggles or moments of growth that would give weight to this declaration. Instead, the exploration of Lola’s character remains surface-level, missing opportunities to show us the layers beneath her pain and resolve.
- "we all go through fucked up stuff but we are not born fucked up" is a line that begs to be interpreted deeper than the film actually explores.
- "I use to think that I didn't deserve a second chance" is such a great insight I wish we would have gotten much earlier?? like it's implied but never said.
