Directed by Kasey Lum, Bloom tells the story of a woman (Jodi Balfour) who returns home, only to find it empty. While she was out, her girlfriend has cleared out her clothes and abandoned the relationship. Left only with the plant that she had purchased as a gift for her lover, the woman grieves the loss by focusing her emotions on the seedling itself.
Clocking in at only 11 minutes, this short has a lot of story to tell during its limited runtime. Bloom may be brief but it remains a poignant film about the life and death of a relationship. After discovering that her partner has abandoned their relationship, Lum recognizes the toll that broken connections can take upon our soul. By connecting the jilted lover’s emotional health with the life of her plant, Bloom understands the ways that our hearts can be drained at the death of a relationship.
While finding love can give life to our souls, to take it away can drain it just as quickly.
One of the most interesting aspects about Bloom is its silence. With minimal dialogue, Balfour is forced to communicate her love and loss through her facial expressions. As such, every glance and glare feels pregnant with emotion as her character attempts to grapple with her broken heart.
In some ways, Bloom echoes the sort of experience that took place during the pandemic as people were forced into isolation. Left to connect only with themselves, we have seen many people suffer tremendous psychological loss. While Bloom is not directly about the pandemic, one can see the psychological connections within it and the damage that can be done when we’re left alone with our thoughts.
To hear our conversation with Kasey Lum, click here.
Bloom is now playing at TIFF ’23. For more information, click here.
