There seems to be a current trend in cinema of pushing the audience to experience anxiety and pain, being led by the lead character. Marty Supreme, for example, is an experience of angst in which every step Marty takes leaves you with a knot in your stomach. Now comes Oscar-nominated If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, a tale of a mother pushed to the limits that will have you feeling more and more stressed as the film progresses, as we watch a woman literally on the verge of a nervous breakdown. This might not be the best way to get you to see it, but with an outstanding lead performance, it’s worth the admission.

Linda is a woman being pushed to the edge. She is a therapist who needs her colleague’s help processing her own problems. She is a mother to a chronically ill daughter, she has a husband who is never around, a missing patient and a hole in her ceiling which leaves her living in a motel. Not only that, she is struggling to put a filter on her everyday comments, which leads her to more anxiety.

Director and writer Mary Bronstein has delivered a film that feels more like you are living someone else’s life. She has taken a character with small issues and piled them up until the weight of her life is pushed to breaking point. We experience every inch of pain and suffering that Linda does by putting the camera right into Linda’s face, and as the film progresses, it seems to be getting closer and closer until we are almost inside her. It’s more than enough to experience what she is feeling.

Yet at the same time, this is not a pain-induced movie; it’s also very smart and sometimes quite funny. Linda’s relationship with her therapist is often strained and lacking in any emotional connection, and yet, as unhelpful as he is, she clings to it. Her husband is a boat captain who berates her over the phone for every little issue, and even though her daughter (whose voice we only hear) is ill and needs almost constant attention, Linda clings to the love she has for her as her only salvation.

When she is forced to move into a motel, again facing problems that almost seem unnecessary yet forcing Linda even more anxiety, she meets a receptionist who enjoys trips to the dark web for recreational escape that only leaves Linda with more issues. Anyone who has ever felt that knot in their chest will know exactly what Linda is carrying.

This is a film focusing on one woman, but it could be about anyone who struggles to cope. Looking at Linda’s eyes, you see every inch of what she is going through, from the bags and wrinkles that seem to get bigger and longer, to the weight of the world pulling her eyelids down. It would take a performance that is both brave and incredibly demanding, and that is why Rose Byrne has become a Golden Globe winner and now Oscar nominee.

Byrne is more known for roles in Bridesmaids and the Bad Neighbours movies, but this is the first time she has to carry a movie, and she is magnificent. She has a great command of comedy, but here she shows what a superb dramatic actress she is. We follow her every move in virtual close-up, and she shows it all in her eyes. If Jessie Buckley had not delivered such a powerhouse in Hamnet, the Byrne would be a sure winner of the major awards, it’s that good a performance.

We must not forget Conan O’Brien as Linda’s therapist. The chat show host and Oscar host are hilarious, delivering a deadpan, straight-laced performance that seems more irritated with Linda than helpful. It’s a terrific contrast to the complexities of Byrne.

If I Had Legs I’d Kick You is a fever dream of a movie. It’s intense, powerful and often darkly comic. If you are looking for gentle entertainment, this might not be for you, but it is certainly worth seeing for Byrne’s incredible performance and a film that will sit in the depths of your stomach for a long time after.

4 out of 5

Director: Mary Bronstein

Starring: Rose Byrne, Conan O’Brien, Danielle Macdonald, Delaney Quinn, Mary Bronstein, A$AP Rocky, Ivy Wolk, Christian Slater, Mark Stolzenberg

Written by: Mary Bronstein

Running Time: 113 mins

Cert: 15

Release date: 20th February 2026