“Tuesday” is a thought-provoking, extremely original first feature. The theme of Death is viewed through the lens of both an individual family and the world at large. The film deftly balances humor with pathos.

The movie begins with a view of the earth from space. Voices are heard. Several people in the process of dying are reflecting on their readiness to pass on. A giant macaw approaches one of them and passes its wing over the person.

The next scene takes place in a family home. The mother Zora (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) leaves each day but does not go to work. She sits in her car, eats cheese in a park, and sells family items to a storekeeper.

Her daughter Tuesday (Lola Petticrew) is left with Nurse Billie (Leah Harvey). Tuesday appears to be very ill with an unspecified condition. She uses oxygen and needs a lift to go from her bed to a wheelchair.
Tuesday and Billie are sitting outside talking. When Billie enters the house, the macaw comes to visit Tuesday. Its claws appear to be sticky with glue.

From the macaw’s perspective, its head is filled with all sorts of sounds and voices. Seemingly overwhelmed, it shrinks down so that it fits into Tuesday’s cupped hand.

Inside, Tuesday prepares a bath in the sink for the bird. It cleans itself up and then begins to speak to the girl. At first, its voice (Arinze Kene) is halting because it has been a long time since the macaw spoke. The bird hears fewer voices in the presence of Tuesday.

The macaw is Death personified. It informs Tuesday that she is slated to die.

Tuesday asks to call her mother but Zora doesn’t answer. When she comes home, she eventually discovers the macaw.

The realization that the macaw has come to claim her daughter sends Zora into a frenzy. She attacks Death. After knocking the bird out, she sets it on fire and then eats it.

From then on, strange things begin to happen. What is the world like if Death is removed?

Will Tuesday live? How will Zora cope if she dies? Is Death permanently silenced?

The use of a macaw to represent Death is truly unique. The voice of Arinze Kene has a perfect raspy quality that conveys an otherworldliness. In fact, the tone of the sounds reminded me of the goat Black Phillip’s eerie voice in “The Witch.”

The visual effects throughout are kept simple but are well-done. The macaw’s changes in size seem effortless as do other similar effects on another character. I also liked the sound design for the voices in Death’s head.

The score is wonderfully wrought. The cinematography, especially in night scenes, is superbly filmed. You can clearly see the characters even though it is dark outside, which sadly is sometimes not the case in movies.

The theme of what happens when Death is no more is thoughtfully considered. Is Death a necessary part of the world? Are we willing to live with the consequences of nothing dying in the world? How do you bring back Death after seemingly killing it?

More poignantly Zora’s dysfunctionality in reacting to her daughter’s decline is examined carefully. At first she appears to be unable to function in a job while deceiving her daughter with the impression that she goes to work every day. When Tuesday is allowed upstairs and sees that Zora has sold off quite a bit of the furniture to make money, she is disappointed in her mother.

I was impressed by the portrayal of the dilemma between wanting a person to continue to live because you love them versus letting them go when they are experiencing severe chronic pain. Finding the balance between these two points of view is something that Zora will have to deal with as the picture progresses.
Tuesday and Death also talk about the nature of the afterlife. Death’s response is beautiful.

The screenplay is well-crafted. There is never a sense of the maudlin. The realism of Zora and Tuesday’s life is not sugar-coated. The creativeness in the story line is remarkable. I could never predict what was going to happen in this roller-coaster of a plot.

Both Louis-Dreyfus and Petticrew give nuanced performances. Petticrew is in more scenes at first and I liked the naturalism of her portrayal of Tuesday. Louis-Dreyfus really shines in the later scenes, particularly one on a beach.

The ending seemed appropriate for a film that does not shy away from hard truths. The difficulty of being human is on full display.

This is not a film for young viewers. With teens, it could be a starting point for further discussion.
Some may avoid this movie because for them its topic is scary or makes them uncomfortable. But it is a gem worth seeing.

Five out of five stars

A mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, in a profoundly moving performance) and her teenage daughter (Lola Petticrew) must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird. From debut filmmaker Daina O. Pusi?, Tuesday is a heart-rending fairy tale about the echoes of loss and finding resilience in the unexpected.

Cast: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lola Petticrew, Leah Harvey, and Arinzé Kene
Written and Directed by: Daina O. Pusi?