Riley Keough and Jena Malone Explore the Dynamics of Love and Friendship in So Yong Kim’s ‘Lovesong’

Sandra Miska

Two stages in the long-term friendship of two twenty-something women are examined in the new drama “Lovesong.” Sarah (Riley Keough) is introduced as a young stay-at-home mother living in a rural area with only her three-year-old daughter Jessie (Jessie Ok Gray) for company. Her older husband, Dean (Cary Joli Fukunaga), who only makes a brief appearance via video chat, is away on business more than he is at home, leaving his wife and daughter to their own devices.

The monotony is broken by the arrival of Mindy (Jena Malone), Sarah’s best friend from college in New York. The trio embarks on a road trip and Sarah’s stress slowly melts away as she spends time with the more free-spirited Mindy. However, the journey is not without tension. At a rodeo, Mindy flirts with a random cowboy, causing Sarah to become irritated and even a bit jealous. Later that night after some drinking and raunchy girl talk, Sarah becomes emotional and the two friends start kissing. Their connection deepens the next day when they take Jessie to a fair. There is little dialogue throughout the early scenes, but the camera captures plenty of meaningful looks shared between the two women. It also becomes apparent that Mindy and Jessie are also growing closer, as if they are turning into a little family. The next morning, Sarah and Mindy wake up in bed together. The events of the previous evening remain unclear until they discuss what happened over breakfast. Their new intimacy proves to be too much for Mindy, so she hops a bus back to New York with a flimsy excuse.

The film then cuts ahead three years into the future and a divorced Sarah is on her way to Nashville for Mindy’s wedding. It becomes evident from her conversation with Jessie (Sky Ok Gray) during the car ride that she and Mindy have not spoken much during the intervening years. To add to the awkwardness of the situation is the fact that although Mindy has chosen Jessie to be her flower girl, she has excluded Sarah from the wedding party. Instead, she has chosen her annoying, attention hungry co-worker (Brooklyn Decker) to take on the role of being her maid of honor. The groom, Leif (Ryan Eggold), seems nice enough, but their quick marriage raises some questions from many people including Mindy’s mother (Rosanna Arquette). The wedding is so thrown together that Mindy doesn’t even pick out her dress until the day before the ceremony. Fortunately, Sarah is willing to run a bunch of errands. It soon becomes clear that Mindy is avoiding any deep discussions with her former friend, but it’s not long before the women are forced to confront their feelings.

“Lovesong” is a beautifully shot film, and co-stars Keough and Malone have great chemistry. Malone, an actress who has been under the radar for over a decade, is especially convincing as the fun girl who really wants something more out of life. Filmmaker So Yong Kim presents more than a simple love story with “Lovesong.” The film examines the changes that occur within both platonic and romantic relationships in a way that anyone over the age of 25 who has either seen or experienced such relationships first hand can relate to. The only negative aspect of the film is that it ends too abruptly.

“Lovesong” opens Feb. 17 in New York and March 3 in Los Angeles.