Film Review: Lizzie Lazarus (2024)
Lizzie Lazarus begins well enough: the titular character, lies lifeless in a body bag while her sister and boyfriend drag her through a dense, foreboding forest. Their destination? A rumored supernatural patch said to restore the dead to life. As the pair grapples with the physical and emotional weight of their task, secrets about their relationships—and what led them to this moment—begin to surface. It’s a story rich with potential, one that parallels many popular properties, but how well that potential is realized is up for debate.
“A Grim Journey” – The Setup
The film sets the stage with an atmospheric opening, immersing the audience in the oppressive silence of the forest. The relationship dynamics between Lizzie’s sister and boyfriend have the potential for compelling tension, with unresolved guilt and suspicion bubbling beneath the surface. However, while the setup is primed for an exploration of grief, morality, and the lengths we go to for love, the narrative falters by never going deeper than the surface.
Instead of building emotional stakes or engaging character portrayals, much of the runtime is consumed by uneventful stretches of dialogue that fail to advance the plot or flesh out the characters. The audience is left craving more insight into Lizzie’s death, the motivations of her loved ones, and the mystical forces that supposedly await them.
“Treading Water” – Performances and Direction
The performances are solid, doing what they can with an underdeveloped script. Lizzie’s sister and boyfriend both deliver moments of emotional vulnerability, but their interactions often feel repetitive, lacking dimensions or developmental arc to be more than adequate.
Visually, the film finds a good degree of success. The forest’s eerie stillness is captured beautifully in certain shots, lending the setting an otherworldly feel. Unfortunately, the wider cinematography struggles to maintain this level of polish throughout, and the film’s energy lags outside visually striking moments of impact.
“Horror Without Bite” – The Thriller and Supernatural Elements
Lizzie Lazarus is billed as a psychological thriller with supernatural undertones, but the film feels disappointingly light on both. The mythical resurrection zone, central to the plot, leaves the audience with more questions than answers. The horror elements—both psychological and visceral—are too subdued to make an impression. The film also misses a key opportunity to use Lizzie herself as a symbolic or narrative force. Her death is the story’s fulcrum, its catalyst, yet she feels oddly sidelined as the focus shifts entirely to her companions’ more earthly struggles. The body bag becomes more of a prop than a source of dread or emotional resonance.
Final Thoughts
Lizzie Lazarus is a film that centers on Lizzie, a troubled woman trapped in a complex and tragic relationship with life and death. Unhappy and lost, Lizzie finds herself crossing the threshold between the living and the dead, driven by a powerful and unsettling bond with her sister. The film’s heart isn’t about redemption, but rather an exploration of Lizzie’s inner turmoil and her sense of disconnection from the world around her.
The cycle of life and death she’s caught in is at once a curse and a strange form of solace, reflecting her struggle with the inevitability of her own fate. While the premise is intriguing, the film’s slow pacing and lack of a deeper dive into Lizzie’s psyche mean that much of its emotional and supernatural potential is left unfulfilled. The atmosphere is eerie, and the concept is haunting, but the film never quite manages to deliver on the tension and emotional impact it sets up.
Score: 4.0 – A journey worth taking only for the premise, but don’t expect a satisfying destination.
Strengths:
A visually compelling setting
An intriguing, albeit underutilized, premise
Weaknesses:
Characters lack depth and development
Pacing is too slow, with minimal payoff
Horror and supernatural elements feel muted