“Love Lies Bleeding” is a little crime noir film which tries some interesting variation on its genre elements. As its two different female main characters pull or push each other in their dangerous erotic liaison, the movie occasionally jolts us via several nasty moments of violence and blood, and it even enters the realm of fantasy around the end of its bumpy narrative.

The movie, which is set in 1989, begins with a rather unnerving opening shot to remember, and then we get to know Lousie “Lou” Langston (Kristen Stewart), a young single lesbian woman who has worked as a gym manager in a little town located in some remote desert area. As she goes through another mundane day at the gym, Lou happens to notice a female stranger doing some exercise, and it does not take much time for them to get quite closer to each other when they later come across each other.

That female stranger in question is Jaqueline “Jackie” Cleaver (Katy O’Brien), a young promising bodybuilder who has been going to Las Vegas for participating in an upcoming bodybuilding competition to be held several days later. Because she needs some money for going to Las Vegas, Jackie gets herself employed at a local shooting range owned by Lou’s father Lou Sr. (Ed Harris), and Lou does not mind that much as she and her father have been estranged from each other for some time due to an unspecified reason (No, he has no problem at all with his daughter being a lesbian).

As they become more intimate with each other, Jackie suggests that Lou should leave for Las Vegas along with her, but Lou hesitates for an understandable reason. Her sister Beth (Jena Malone) has been constantly abused by her crummy husband JJ (Dave Franco), so Lou must stand by her as much as she can, though there is really nothing she can do for protecting her sister or stopping JJ, who incidentally works for Lou Sr.

Meanwhile, things are getting a little more complicated for Lou after she is approached by an FBI agent. Lou Sr. is actually a powerful crime boss dominating over the area, and FBI has been looking for anyone who can tell anything useful for their investigation on Lou Sr. Although they have not gotten anyone yet, they hope that Lou will eventually speak against her father due to that personal matter between them.

In addition, there is also steroid, which usually comes handy in Lou’s gym. Lou gladly provides steroid to Jackie, and Jackie surely experiences a considerable degree of muscular enhancement as she pushes herself further with more steroid injection. I must say that the depiction of steroid in the film is rather exaggerated but I must also admit that it is a bit amusing to see how it functions like a can of spinach does for Popeye.

All these and other elements in the story sometimes do not gel together that well in the screenplay by director Ross Glass and her co-writer Weronika Tofilska, and several sudden plot turns can be too jarring for you, but the movie keeps us engaged via the increasingly troubling relationship between Lou and Jackie. As going through a sort of steroid rage, Jackie often becomes unpredictable, and Lou finds herself in an unenviable position of taking care of the mess caused by her lover. She feels quite frustrated to say the least, but she is still attracted to Jackie nonetheless, and, like many lead characters of crime noir films, she desperately wants to believe that there is still a way out for her and her lover.

It surely helps that the movie is fueled by the solid chemistry between its two lead performers. Kristen Stewart, who has successfully transformed herself into one of the most dependable actresses working in Hollywood during the last 10 years, flawlessly embodies her character’s loneliness and frustration, and we can see how much her character is accustomed to taking care of the mess caused by others around her even before Jackie comes into her little world. On the opposite, Katy O’Brien, whom you may notice for her supporting role in TV drama series “The Mandalorian”, effectively complements her co-star while bringing considerable authenticity to her role (She was actually a professional bodybuilder before beginning her acting career, by the way), and she also handles well several tricky scenes later in the film where her character is driven to more rage and violence thanks to her steroid injection

Stewart and O’Brien are also supported well by a number of good performers who bring some life and personality to their archetype noir characters. While Jena Malone and Anna Baryshnikov do more than required by their rather thankless supporting parts, Dave Franco is suitably obnoxious as Lou’s despicable brother-in-law, and Ed Harris, an ever-radiable veteran actor who has seldom disappointed us during last 40 years, has a juicy fun with his crusty villain role whenever he enters the screen.

On the whole, “Love Lies Bleeding” feels occasionally uneven but ultimately quite impressive as it goes wild along with its two lead characters under Glass’ skillful direction. Just like her previous film “Saint Maud”, the movie is not something you can casually watch on Sunday afternoon, but you will not easily forget its intense moments, and you may be more interested in what Glass will show us next.