With Love and a Major Organ – Movie Review (3/5)

WITH LOVE AND A MAJOR ORGAN is a new sci-fi romance that works remarkably well. 91 minutes of genre-hybrid done right. So simple and direct, yet so deep and relatable. Read our full With Love and a Major Organ movie review here!

WITH LOVE AND A MAJOR ORGAN you’ll get a sci-fi romance that could have been a story in Black Mirror. Well, if the sci-fi element had been tech-based instead of just an alternate universe. Still, I stand by my conviction that this genre-hybrid has the depth and engagement quality of a Black Mirror episode.

The genre hybrid has a runtime of just 91 minutes, and while you do need to pay attention, it’s told in a very direct manner. You don’t have to read too much into the symbolism as it is right there front and center.

Continue reading our With Love and a Major Organ movie review below.

Give your heart away

In With Love and a Major Organ, your heart is something you can physically remove from your body. Everyone’s heart is an object, yet there is a very strong pressure to hold back your emotions.

We meet the lonely Virtual Insurance broker Anabel (Anna Maguire from Violation and The Hummingbird Project) who always follows her heart. It isn’t even a choice for her, but it does mean that she’s different from everyone else.

She is always late to work but also manages to be the best person at customer support. Simple because she emphasizes with the people she talks to.

However, Anabel can only take so much pain, so after a series of devastating emotional blows, she rips her heart from her chest. She decided to give it to a man she’s fallen for. His name is George (Hamza Haq, from NBC’s Transplant) and he seems to be devoid of feelings.

Not that he wants to, he is just strangely unfeeling. As soon as Anabel is unburdened by her constantly feeling heart, life is much easier. Not happy or joyful, just more simple. Very pragmatic and completely without any color.

Suddenly, the world is in color

George, however, wants to understand and removes his own heart and replaces it with Anabel’s. Immediately, he begins to feel everything. Much to the shock of his overbearing mother, Mona (Veena Sood), who has a few big admissions.

Unfortunately, Anabel realizes she needs to get her heart back if she’s going to survive. Quite literally, one cannot live without a heart. Not even in this alternate universe. However, George has set off to experience all the wonders of the world, and the chase for her heart begins.

I should also mention that a therapist is part of this story in a few ways. Her name is Dr. Lee and she’s portrayed by Lynda Boyd, who you may recognize from The Haunting of Bly Manor. Also, Laara Sadiq (Yellowjackets) plays someone who wants to take the place of Anabel in a certain lifelong friendship.

Sensitivity and mental health

While I did state earlier that the symbolism is very direct and easy to catch onto, I also want to highlight that it could just as easily be something you decide to go deeper with.

The whole “listening to your heart” or even “wearing your heart on your sleeve”-approach to life could also be seen as a comment on sensitivity. Or the intense ups and downs of the one with a strong and powerful heart could be a comment on being bipolar.

One minute, the world is full of color, life, and joy, but the next everything can seem dark and cruel and impossible. The switch from hope to despair can be a quick one, and that’s what we see with the person carrying the strong heart in With Love and a Major Organ.

The opposite of that is feeling nothing, which I know is what many bipolar people describe being on medication as feeling like. So, do you want to take the despair with the joy or never have either? Also, is something in between an option?!

Watch With Love and a Major Organ when you get the chance

Kim Albright is the director of this new sci-fi romance which was written by Julia Lederer. I don’t believe I’m familiar with anything either have done before. Most of which appear to be shorts, podcasts, music videos, and other interesting projects.

Hopefully, both Kim Albright and Julia Lederer have more things in their respective pipelines. I, for one, am really enjoying their style and want more of whatever they’re making. If we did half stars, this movie would get 3½ stars.

With Love and a Major Organ was an official selection at the 2023 SXSW Film Festival and the 2023 Fantasia International Film Festival. The movie opened in NYC on March 29, followed by LA on April 5, and now additional cities in the US and Canada on April 12, 2024.

With Love and a Major Organ is coming out in select theaters, so watch it however you can.

Details

Director: Kim Albright
Writer: Julia Lederer
Cast: Anna Maguire, Hamza Haq, Veena Sood, Donna Benedicto, Arghavan Jenati