Pieces of a Woman (2020)
is a raw, emotionally powerful drama directed by Kornél Mundruczó and written by Kata Wéber. Anchored by a heart-wrenching performance from Vanessa Kirby, the film explores grief, trauma, and the personal unraveling that follows unimaginable loss.
The story follows Martha (Kirby), a woman whose life is shattered after the tragic loss of her newborn daughter during a home birth. The harrowing opening sequence—a nearly 30-minute, one-take scene—captures the birth in real time and sets the tone for the film’s intense emotional realism. When the birth ends in tragedy, Martha and her partner Sean (Shia LaBeouf) are left to navigate the wreckage of their relationship, family tensions, and a legal battle against the midwife who oversaw the delivery.
The film doesn’t follow a typical narrative arc, instead focusing on the quiet, often uncomfortable aftermath of loss. Martha’s grief is internalized, and Vanessa Kirby delivers a performance marked by restraint, pain, and subtlety. Ellen Burstyn also gives a powerful supporting turn as Martha’s domineering mother, who has her own ideas of how grief should be handled and pressures Martha toward seeking justice.
Pieces of a Woman is a meditation on how different people cope with trauma—some by pushing it away, others by clinging to blame or control. The cinematography is intimate and unflinching, mirroring Martha’s isolation and detachment from the world around her.
The film asks difficult questions about ownership of grief and the pressure society places on how individuals should process pain. It’s not always an easy watch, but it’s a deeply affecting one, offering no easy answers but capturing the reality of sorrow with honesty and compassion.
Kirby’s performance earned her an Academy Award nomination, and the film itself continues to resonate as a deeply personal, brave examination of a woman reclaiming her life after devastation.
