Love Lies Bleeding
Reclusive gym manager Lou falls hard for Jackie, an ambitious bodybuilder headed through town to Vegas in pursuit of her dream. But their love ignites violence, pulling them deep into the web of Lou's criminal family.
Working with a modest budget of $10.0M, the film achieved a respectable showing with $12.8M in global revenue (+28% profit margin).
Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award5 wins & 49 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Love Lies Bleeding (2024) exhibits carefully calibrated story structure, characteristic of Rose Glass's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 44 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.6, the film showcases strong structural fundamentals.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Lou works the night shift at her small-town New Mexico gym, living a solitary existence estranged from her crime-lord father Lou Sr. She cleans equipment and sells steroids on the side, trapped in a mundane routine.. Notably, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 12 minutes when Jackie, a mysterious bodybuilder drifter heading to Las Vegas for a competition, walks into Lou's gym. Their instant, electric attraction disrupts Lou's isolated existence and sets the story in motion.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 26 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This shows the protagonist's commitment to Lou fully commits to Jackie, deciding to help her prepare for Vegas and opening herself emotionally for the first time in years. She chooses love over her self-protective isolation, crossing into the relationship completely., moving from reaction to action.
At 52 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Notably, this crucial beat Jackie, in a steroid-fueled rage after witnessing JJ abuse Beth again, beats JJ to death. This murder shatters the false victory of their romance and irrevocably binds Lou and Jackie in criminal conspiracy. The stakes become life and death., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 78 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Lou Sr. Discovers the truth about JJ's death. He confronts Lou, and Beth is killed - the whiff of death made literal. Lou's last family connection is severed, and her father becomes her direct enemy. Everything Lou tried to protect has been destroyed., reveals the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 84 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 81% of the runtime. Lou decides to confront her father directly rather than run. She synthesizes her love for Jackie with her rage at her family's destruction, choosing to end the cycle of violence by eliminating its source., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Love Lies Bleeding's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs proven narrative structure principles that track dramatic progression. By mapping Love Lies Bleeding against these established plot points, we can identify how Rose Glass utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Love Lies Bleeding within the crime genre.
Comparative Analysis
Additional crime films include The Bad Guys, Batman Forever and 12 Rounds.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Lou works the night shift at her small-town New Mexico gym, living a solitary existence estranged from her crime-lord father Lou Sr. She cleans equipment and sells steroids on the side, trapped in a mundane routine.
Theme
Lou's sister Beth, covered in bruises from her abusive husband JJ, asks Lou to let things go. The theme of destructive love, toxic family bonds, and the violence that poisons relationships is established.
Worldbuilding
The seedy 1980s New Mexico underworld is established: Lou's gym, her estrangement from her criminal father Lou Sr., her battered sister Beth married to JJ who works for their father, and the corrupt ecosystem of the desert town.
Disruption
Jackie, a mysterious bodybuilder drifter heading to Las Vegas for a competition, walks into Lou's gym. Their instant, electric attraction disrupts Lou's isolated existence and sets the story in motion.
Resistance
Lou and Jackie begin an intense physical relationship. Lou provides Jackie with steroids to enhance her training. Jackie gets a job at Lou Sr.'s gun range, drawing her into the family's orbit. Lou debates getting more involved.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Lou fully commits to Jackie, deciding to help her prepare for Vegas and opening herself emotionally for the first time in years. She chooses love over her self-protective isolation, crossing into the relationship completely.
Mirror World
Jackie represents everything Lou has denied herself: ambition, passion, escape. Their relationship becomes the thematic mirror - can love be transformative or is it inevitably corrupted by the violence surrounding them?
Premise
The passionate love affair intensifies. Jackie trains obsessively, her body transforming with steroids. Lou finds joy and purpose. But Jackie witnesses JJ beating Beth and the violence of Lou's world begins seeping into their bubble of romance.
Midpoint
Jackie, in a steroid-fueled rage after witnessing JJ abuse Beth again, beats JJ to death. This murder shatters the false victory of their romance and irrevocably binds Lou and Jackie in criminal conspiracy. The stakes become life and death.
Opposition
Lou helps cover up JJ's murder. Lou Sr. grows suspicious about his employee's disappearance. FBI agents investigating Lou Sr.'s criminal enterprise close in. The women's paranoia and guilt mount as the body threatens to be discovered.
Collapse
Lou Sr. discovers the truth about JJ's death. He confronts Lou, and Beth is killed - the whiff of death made literal. Lou's last family connection is severed, and her father becomes her direct enemy. Everything Lou tried to protect has been destroyed.
Crisis
Lou processes Beth's death and the full horror of her situation. She must choose between self-preservation and taking action against her father. The dark night forces her to confront that love and violence are inseparable in her world.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Lou decides to confront her father directly rather than run. She synthesizes her love for Jackie with her rage at her family's destruction, choosing to end the cycle of violence by eliminating its source.
Synthesis
The surreal, violent climax unfolds. Jackie, transformed into something almost mythologically powerful by steroids and rage, kills Lou Sr. The film embraces hallucinatory imagery as the women exact their revenge and escape the desert town together.
Transformation
Lou and Jackie drive toward Las Vegas together, covered in blood but free. The final image mirrors the opening isolation but transforms it - Lou is no longer alone. Whether their love is salvation or mutual destruction remains ambiguous, but they have escaped.