A Review of ‘And Now I Lay Me Down’: An actress’ “action” after “cut”
An aging actress reassess her life and contemplates the things that really matter to her.
‘And Now I Lay Me Down’: An actress’ “action” after “cut”
Cast: Jane Kaczemarek, David Guerra, Shi Ne Nielson, Alejandra Flores, Achok Majak, Hannah Leigh, Michael Villar, Sebastian Fernandez, Kamilla Shimina, Chloe Carroll, Bianca Rochestie, L. Elleseg, Raechel Zarzynski, Suzette Clay, Rani DeMuth, Henry Nowakowski, Robert Louis Howley, Eric Roberts
Critic’s Rating: 3 Stars out of 5
Director: Rani DeMuth
Duration: 28 minutes
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Language: English
Release: 2024
What’s it about?
An aging actress reassess her life and contemplates the things that really matter to her.
Review:
Does what we do in life define who we are? And can one shrug off one’s assigned “role” and reinvent oneself? That is the apparent premise of this intriguing but not altogether satisfying Short. The serio-comic tone of this film, while engaging at first, detracts from the poignancy of the story being conveyed. However, the theme on the whole is something of a merit, as is the odd and surprising conclusion - which make And Now I Lay Me Down worth the viewer’s while.
Celia Dalvi (Jane Kaczemarek) is a frustrated has-been actress struggling to recover the glory of her past. While holding out hope to land a coveted role, she tries to adhere to a strict diet and exercise routine. Celia also undergoes an elaborate beauty regimen with the intention of impressing casting directors. However, the accompanying suspense, fear of disappointment, and stress, cause her to indulge in counter-productive habits. Plus, Celia can’t quite quell the eccentricities brought on by her affluent lifestyle.
Is Celia truly past her prime? What does she value most in life and is it too late to redeem herself? These questions race through her mind as she interacts with her agent (voice of Rani DeMuth), her secretary (She Ne Nielson) and her domestic help (David Guerra and Alejandra Flores). Epiphanies abound and a sense of resignation sets in. These occur along with an overwhelming feeling of guilt. Celia confronts her situation and the few people in her life with an alternating sense of flippancy and seriousness.
Writer-director Rani DeMuth has definitely taken a page (or a few) out of the 1950 Hollywood classic Sunset Boulevard. There is also a nod to the more recent Postcards from the Edge (1990). But the filmmaker has tried to infuse some amount of originality in displaying Celia’s character arc and her relationships (or lack thereof) with those in physical proximity to her. Kaczmarek does her best to bring a somewhat uneven script to life while ironically portraying the death of a movie icon.
The production design serves up the usual grandeur of a film star’s domicile with some funny inclusions, while the cinematic music is fittingly melancholic in pivotal scenes. The denouement is both uplifting and comic, but also a tad improbable. After all, it is only a movie and not a tremendously noteworthy one at that. Still, there is enough character-development and visual appeal to keep eyes, ears and to some extent, the heart, open.
