Daisy Ridley has never been better than as the shy, guarded lead of Sometimes I Think About Dying.
Famous for her role as Rey in the Star Wars franchise, Ridley displays more understated and nuanced acting skills in Rachel Lambert's latest work, making it her best performance to date.
Based on Kevin Armento's 2013 play Killers, the movie follows Fran (Ridley), a lonely and introverted woman living in a coastal town in Oregon. She quietly enjoys her 9-to-5 office job, despite not talking to her colleagues, and often fantasises about dying.
Yes, the title is actually accurate.
She doesn't think about dying because she is depressed or wants to take her own life – she's just so at ease in her inner world and so consumed by her social anxiety that the nothingness of death sounds rather appealing to her.
She imagines herself lying dead on a forest floor like she's a tragic figure in a fairytale while printing some documents for work or heating her dinner in a microwave.
What to Read Next
Despite her being content with this occasionally whimsical existence, her desire for human connection soon pushes her out of her comfort zone. The catalyst for that is the arrival of a new colleague to the office, who is replacing the chatty Carol (Marcia DeBonis), who just retired.
The newcomer, Robert (Dave Merheje), is a charismatic and open-hearted man, and apparently the only one capable of bringing more than one-word answers out of Fran. Something sparks in Fran after his arrival, suddenly not entirely satisfied with living among her fantasies, and feeling braver to open herself to others.
Director Rachel Lambert allows viewers to take a peek at Fran's psyche, using cold colour palettes and smart visual ideas — the movie is filled with squares that seem to isolate the protagonist and mirrors that make her seem like she is living in a different dimension, while her house is located on a slope that makes it feel unbalanced.
The movie dances to the rhythm of Fran's quirkiness, eventually even changing her visions of death to reflect the changes in her desires.
Lambert's work is meticulous and often fascinating. She never lets gloominess overshadow the lightness of Fran's story. What a terribly depressing watch this would have been if it was just focused on the rougher edges of this character's emotional life.
Instead, Sometimes I Think About Dying incorporates an adorable sense of humour within the banality of office life (from the odd colleague always looking out the window to the pure excitement in the room when someone brings doughnuts, or the boss' awkward attempts at team-building) and delights in the cuteness of the blossoming romance between Fran and Robert.
Moving away from the sci-fi blockbusters that defined her early acting career, Daisy Ridley brings Fran to life through awkward body language and appealing shyness.
The British actress is captivating as she embodies this unusual introvert, who is proud of her spotless spreadsheets and orders Irish coffee in Chinese restaurants. Fran might feel like a ghost to the people around her, but she is secretly brimming with life.
Ridley is astounding at balancing the character's deadpan delivery with her childlike wonder, expressing volumes with a furrowed brow or a reluctant smile.
Sometimes I Think About Dying is a gentle, layered portrayal of loneliness and yearning. It's about how our unique surrealism finds a way into real life, how the extraordinary touches the ordinary, and how our inner selves can exist outside ourselves and still thrive.
Sometimes I Think About Dying is now out in cinemas.
You Might Like...
Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over eight years. Based in the UK, she is a former deputy movies editor at Digital Spy, and previously worked for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas. Mireia's work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema and GamesRadar+ in the UK. She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service.
During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London. LinkedIn
