A mother and her teenage daughter must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird.A mother and her teenage daughter must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird.A mother and her teenage daughter must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird.
- Awards
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Did you know
- TriviaLola Petticrew was 25 years old when they played the titular 15-year-old.
- SoundtracksFeeling Kinda Old School
performed by Chuck D Beat Crew
Featured review
Condescending and pretentious
Films about dealing with grief are generally meant to be cathartic; people watch such movies in order to relieve themselves of pain through the cleansing practice of shedding tears. Daina Oniunas-Pusic's "Tuesday," on the other hand, inspires more anger and hostility than anything else, and that is not because it is a tale about a talking macaw that spreads death around the world.
It is because it is a pretentious and narrow-minded tale about a talking macaw that spreads death around the world.
The premise is just one of several absurdities in this unconventional story. CGI is convincingly to create a divine bird that can speak (spectacularly voiced by Arinze Kene) and adapt to various sizes. After seeing some of the macaw's first victims, the audience is then invited into the home of Tuesday (Lola Petticrew), a teenager who suffers from a terminal illness and whose mother, Zora (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), pawns various possessions in order to pay the bills. One afternoon, the macaw visits Tuesday, who accepts her fate but requests that she can say goodbye to her mother. Unsurprisingly, Zora resents this inevitability and fights against the macaw.
This should make for a devastating film, but "Tuesday" is not as emotionally satisfying as it ought to be, primarily because Zora is such an unpleasant character. Now, Louis-Dreyfus is obviously a talented actress, but it is difficult to appreciate her performance here when her character repeatedly yells at Tuesday whenever she is confronted about her own selfish deeds. I understand that the film is trying to depict the anxiety, anger, and insecurity that can result from dealing with terminal illness, but one would expect Zora to be a little more compassionate and listen to her dying daughter's needs. Zora's character arc feels somewhat implausible and forced, and it doesn't help that this semi-realistic situation has to intermix with the magical parrot stuff.
"Tuesday" is supposed to be a film that deals with the universal concept of grief, but it preaches its message to the audience in a particularly shameless way. The film is not merely secular; it is anti-religion, with the macaw overtly denying the existence of God and, in one condescending and offensive scene, mocking Jesus Christ (in addition to other historical figures). "Tuesday" will likely insult not only Christians but any viewers who believe in some kind of deity, which sort of defeats the purpose of the film. Movies like "Up", "Ordinary People", and even the recent indie film "Ghostlight" have been able to remain relatively secular and yet communicate a meaningful message about coping with grief, without insulting religious audiences.
Overall, "Tuesday" is an uneven and disjointed work that preaches to the audience more than it inspires their imagination. That said, the film scores some points in its allegory about death, specifically in the way it illustrates the relationship between the macaw and Tuesday; the latter befriends the macaw and therefore learns to embrace her fate. Director Oniunas-Pusic's vision throughout the film is clearly vivid and ambitious, and one hopes that her next film will be just as original, but more relatable.
It is because it is a pretentious and narrow-minded tale about a talking macaw that spreads death around the world.
The premise is just one of several absurdities in this unconventional story. CGI is convincingly to create a divine bird that can speak (spectacularly voiced by Arinze Kene) and adapt to various sizes. After seeing some of the macaw's first victims, the audience is then invited into the home of Tuesday (Lola Petticrew), a teenager who suffers from a terminal illness and whose mother, Zora (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), pawns various possessions in order to pay the bills. One afternoon, the macaw visits Tuesday, who accepts her fate but requests that she can say goodbye to her mother. Unsurprisingly, Zora resents this inevitability and fights against the macaw.
This should make for a devastating film, but "Tuesday" is not as emotionally satisfying as it ought to be, primarily because Zora is such an unpleasant character. Now, Louis-Dreyfus is obviously a talented actress, but it is difficult to appreciate her performance here when her character repeatedly yells at Tuesday whenever she is confronted about her own selfish deeds. I understand that the film is trying to depict the anxiety, anger, and insecurity that can result from dealing with terminal illness, but one would expect Zora to be a little more compassionate and listen to her dying daughter's needs. Zora's character arc feels somewhat implausible and forced, and it doesn't help that this semi-realistic situation has to intermix with the magical parrot stuff.
"Tuesday" is supposed to be a film that deals with the universal concept of grief, but it preaches its message to the audience in a particularly shameless way. The film is not merely secular; it is anti-religion, with the macaw overtly denying the existence of God and, in one condescending and offensive scene, mocking Jesus Christ (in addition to other historical figures). "Tuesday" will likely insult not only Christians but any viewers who believe in some kind of deity, which sort of defeats the purpose of the film. Movies like "Up", "Ordinary People", and even the recent indie film "Ghostlight" have been able to remain relatively secular and yet communicate a meaningful message about coping with grief, without insulting religious audiences.
Overall, "Tuesday" is an uneven and disjointed work that preaches to the audience more than it inspires their imagination. That said, the film scores some points in its allegory about death, specifically in the way it illustrates the relationship between the macaw and Tuesday; the latter befriends the macaw and therefore learns to embrace her fate. Director Oniunas-Pusic's vision throughout the film is clearly vivid and ambitious, and one hopes that her next film will be just as original, but more relatable.
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- bunnelljosh
- Jun 17, 2024
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Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $706,683
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $25,665
- Jun 9, 2024
- Gross worldwide
- $750,565
- Runtime1 hour 50 minutes
- Color
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