Tracker Pixel for Entry

‘Tuesday’ Heartbreak: Pusić Contemplates the End

Cinema | June 17th, 2024

Daina Pusić’s feature narrative debut “Tuesday” premiered at the 2023 Telluride Film Festival last September. A joint production of A24, BBC Film and the British Film Institute, the movie stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Lola Petticrew as mother and child on a journey toward the death of the latter from a terminal illness. In an unorthodox bit of character design, the principal performers are joined by the manifestation of Death as a CGI-enhanced macaw voiced with a gravelly rasp by the Nigerian-born, London-based actor and playwright Arinzé Kene. This curious story element should draw at least a few adventuresome viewers looking for an offbeat alternative to big budget summer fare.

Pusić, working from her own original script, makes several imaginative and exciting narrative choices to work terrain that dates to the earliest theatrical drama performed on the stages of ancient Greece. Grappling with some of the most basic philosophical questions, from the meaning and/or meaninglessness of life to the existence and/or non-existence of an all-powerful creator, the filmmaker ambitiously reckons with several of the toughest dimensions accompanying grief and the process of letting go. Common wisdom says that children should bury their parents and not the other way around; Pusić leans heavily on Louis-Dreyfus to convey the emotional chaos that accompanies the guilt and despair of such an awful situation.

At 111 minutes, “Tuesday” labors to successfully sustain its length. Despite the fleeting presence of a few folks briefly on hand to illustrate the overwhelming and exhausting job requirements of Death (who at one point unburdens himself regarding the taxing workload and the cacophony of voices that fill his head), the only really significant person outside the primary trio is the home health/hospice nurse played by Leah Harvey. A source of potential viewer frustration, Pusić deliberately withholds any back stories, side stories, or, for that matter, any sort of material that would expand and deepen the characters.

The filmmaker’s choices aren’t entirely devoid of charm, however. After bargaining with Death for a little more time, the title fifteen-year-old deconstructs the bittersweet message in Ice Cube’s melancholic masterpiece “It Was a Good Day,” discovering that the Grim Reaper is a fellow hip-hop fan. The bird, who can grow to enormous size or shrink small enough to perch inside Tuesday’s ear, inspires many questions ultimately left unanswered. In one extended sequence that echoes the premise of Piers Anthony’s 1983 novel “On a Pale Horse,” mother Zora, with Tuesday strapped to her back, temporarily takes on Death’s occupational responsibilities.

Pusić never quite brings all of the disparate components together in a satisfying manner; we are bounced between the reconciliation of the more concrete parent/child relationship and the fantasy abstractions represented by the supernatural parrot. Petticrew’s Tuesday —beautiful, calm, and dignified even as Zora fights to keep herself together—belongs to the cinematic tradition coined by Roger Ebert as Ali MacGraw’s Syndrome/Disease: “the medical condition in which you grow more and more beautiful until you die.” Add “Tuesday” to the group containing “Love Story,” “Restless,” “The Fault in Our Stars,” “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl,” and countless others. 

Recently in:

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comNorth Dakotans will take part in a nationwide civil rights rally on Thursday, July 17. Protests, marches, rallies and acts of service are scheduled in Bismarck, Bottineau, Devils Lake,…

Back-to-school season is on the horizon, but there's still plenty of summer left. Check out our favorite August attractions and events in North Dakota and western Minnesota. And if if you missed them, here are a few excellent May…

July 18-19, 25-26 and August 2-3North Dakota Horse Park, 5180 19th Ave. N., FargoLadies and gentlemen, prepare to place your bets — racing season is upon us! Not just horses will be racing this year; word on the street suggests…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com On July fourth, Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest took place at Coney Island. The winners, Joey Chestnut and Miki Sudo, reigned victorious. Chestnut earned his 17th title by…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWhy doesn’t the world require politicians to leave office at 60?Most of the leaders of countries, whether gods, fascists, democrats or socialists, are not doing very well these days. David Van…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gion and Simone Wairickgion@gmail.com The Red River Market returned to downtown Fargo on Saturday, July 12. The event will take place every Saturday except July 19. (That date will be moved to Sunday, July 20, due to the…

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comThe Moorhead Public Library will offer three free, all-ages outdoor concerts featuring regional bands this summer. The series begins on June 12 with the Meat Rabbits, a group that blends…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comPhoto by Sabrina Hornung Wing, North Dakota is a town of 132 located about an hour northwest of Bismarck on Highway 36. There’s a shiny new Cenex on the intersection of the highway and the high…

By Deb Wallworkdwallwork@icloud.comI first met Catherine Mulligan at a party at her house. It was a small gathering, spontaneous, just a few people over for dinner. Directed toward a stack of plates and bowls and a big pot warming…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comPhoto by Yvonne Denault There is something intimate and personal about plays. Even in our age of multimillion dollar Hollywood productions and droves of streaming services, watching actors…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

The drug that keeps re-purposing itselfBy Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but…

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson@rocketmail.com Working in the Bakken oil fields of the Williston Basin is so different from my home in Fargo. I'm not judging, because the people working and living in western North Dakota are very…