Like many people, I went into Pieces of Her thinking that it was going to be awesome. Brought to us by Charlotte Stoudt, this is based on a 2018 novel that was a pretty big hit. For the most part, Netflix tends to get it right with its thrillers. The trailer for this looked awesome and like it could be a real mystery full of twists, turns, and action.
How to Download Pieces of Her
You can download or stream the film from Netflix. Click on the Download button at the end of this review. Check out also other Toni Collette performances such as Nightmare Alley, Knives Out, or Velvet Buzzsaw.
The Movie Review
Also, the fact that Piece of Her stars Toni Collette was another reason why I was excited for this to drop on Netflix. Toni Collette is one of those rare actresses that just excels in everything she is in. I do not actually think I have seen her not be great in anything. Usually, even if the movie or TV show is not good, her performance stands out and that is the case with Pieces of Her.
The plot of the show is about a mother and her daughter. We have Laura who is played by Toni Collette and 30-year-old Andy who is played by Bella Heathcote. They are having a normal lunch when a guy comes in with a gun. Laura stands up to him and takes him out like it is nothing!
This completely shocks Andy and makes her wonder who her mother really is. That is the least of the trouble this incident causes though as secrets from Laura’s past are brought up and it puts her and Andy in extreme danger. I know what you are thinking “this sounds amazing!” and I agree as a premise this is exactly what you want in a thriller, but the execution leaves a great deal to be desired.
The show jumps around in time as we get to see Laura as a child and how she grew up in extreme wealth with two brothers. A charismatic man called Nick (Joe Dempsey and Aaron Jeffery) comes into her life and he ends up starting a domestic terrorist organization that Laura gets pulled into.
Again, this sounds great and there is some good stuff here, but Pieces of Her has a major problem and that problem is Andy. Andy as one of the main characters is just so unlikeable. The reason Andy is so unlikeable is that she makes a stupid decision after a stupid decision. It is like she is actively going out of her way to get caught and put herself and her family in extreme danger. She is 30 in the show, but she acts like she is around 15!
It makes the show very frustrating to watch and by the end of it, I must admit I was kind of rooting for the bad guys! Pieces of Her is not a terrible show and there is some good stuff here, I will admit I was kept interested in what the deal with Laura’s past was right until the big reveal so I have to give it a bit of credit for that.
I have certainly seen worse mystery thrillers than this. However, out of all the shows that I have watched in 2022, Pieces of Her would not have a spot on my top 10. I wonder if they toned down the dumb and frustrating decisions that Andy made if it would have made it a better show? I guess we will never know.
