Below Her Mouth is a Canadian erotic romantic drama film released in 2016. It was directed by April Mullen and the script was written by Stephanie Fabrizi. One of the distinguishing features the film is known for is that it was produced entirely by women, which contributes critically to the film’s tone, intimacy, and perspective. The film highlights the short yet passionate love affair between two women: one a liberated homosexual and the other a fiancée to a man and struggling with her emotions and identity.
The film has been described as sultry, full of heated emotions, and divisive. While critics were split in their reviews, the film certainly resonated with viewers who appreciated the unadulterated depiction of female desire and the film’s rich, enveloping cinematography. Below her mouth is primarily about emotional and physical intimacy between two people who are drawn to each other and yet resolutely fight the pull, rather than narrative intricacy.
🎬 Plot Overview
The movie centers on Jasmine, portrayed by Natalie Krill, a successful fashion editor in Toronto. On the surface, it seems like she has everything – a loving fiancé in Rile (Sebastian Pigott), a cozy house, and a stable career. However, a persistent sense of uneasiness and restlessness simmers beneath the surface, revealing an elusive dissatisfaction even she struggles to articulate.
Dallas (Erika Linder) is a construction worker and a local lesbian bar frequenter. She is a ruggedly attractive roofer and dives into the local lesbian nightlife scene. Dallas is emotionally scarred from a recent relationship and lives a more transient, closed off, emotionally guarded life. One night, Dallas and Jasmine meet at a bar. The attraction is instant, electrifying, and overwhelming.
What starts as flirtation quickly escalates into a passionate affair. Jasmine is ushered into a world of emotional vulnerability and intense physical connection, which stands in stark contrast to her orderly life. Over time, the women grow together, their shared passion evolving into a mode of unspoken communication.
Jasmine starts to interrogate her life in fresh terms: her sexuality, relationship, and personal identity. Intimacy and hope blossom for Dallas, alongside deepening the wounds of isolation she had deliberately cultivated, after experiencing the couple’s feelings of intimacy. Both women, however, share a piercing awareness that their world is a haven—a haven at risk of outside trauma, expectations, and fear.
There’s not a neat resolution to this narrative. Instead, the film gives an emotional snapshot of the two people lost in love, infused with desire—though, for only brief moments in time.
🎭 Performances and Character Dynamics
Natalie Krill as Jasmine: A viewer witnesses Krill’s transformation into Jasmine and her performance is multi-dimensional as she navigates a character who is terrified and drawn to her desires as a woman. Her metamorphosis from restrained and uncertain to fully present is believable.
Erika Linder as Dallas: Linder’s first feature role as Dallas gives us a glimpse of her quiet strength and intensity. A Swedish model, Linder’s androgynous emotional detachment creates a compelling contrast to internal fragility. She deepens the portrayal of what could easily have been a flat “bad girl.”
Both leads’ chemistry is pivotal to the film and their interactions resonate with raw authenticity. Coupled with a sensuality that is more emotional than explicit, even the most provocative scenes are deeply intimate.
🎥 Direction and Cinematic Style
As a result of all her experiences, April Mullen has crafted a film brimming with vivid imagery. It is clear from the film’s close-up shots, especially in the more private moments, that all-women crews are not a gimmick. Rather, the camera work is intimate, gentle, and non-objectifying. The film’s tenderness toward bodies defies expectation; rather than seeking to sensationalize, it prioritizes intimacy and gaze-shifting subtle closeness, and viscosity of touch.
Light and shadow are employed by cinematographer Maya Bankovic to create a dreamy and surreal atmosphere that reflects the emotional depth of the central relationship. The film’s natural lighting, soft focus shots, and handheld camerawork add a sense of immediacy and intimacy.
The film’s soundtrack features ambient music that reinforces the mood, maintaining a delicate balance that does not overshadow the story. Together with the visuals, sound creates an emotional cocoon into which the audience is drawn into the protagonists’ inner world.
🎯 Themes and Subtext
- Sexual Identity and Awakening
Below Her Mouth revolves fundamentally around self-discovery. Jasmine’s journey involves unlearning deeply ingrained expectations and confronting a truth she had long evaded. Rather than a dramatic ‘coming out’ moment, her awakening is framed as a deeply intimate untangling.
- Emotional Vulnerability
Emotional exposure is a challenge for both Jasmine and Dallas. For Jasmine, it’s the confrontation of long suppressed feelings. For Dallas, it’s allowing herself to feel again after enduring emotional pain.
- Desire and Control
This film showcases the paradoxical nature of desire; it can be both liberating while at the same time overwhelming. Both characters experience a loss of emotional control once they indulge in their chemistry, resulting in confusion, liberation, and transformation.
- Female Gaze and Representation
This film is notable for its all-female crew and unapologetic focus on female pleasure, allowing it to reclaim the erotic narrative from the male gaze. Empathy and equality inform the lens through which the film’s sensuality is captured.
📊 Reception and Cultural Impact
Below Her Mouth received mixed reviews. Some believed the film relied too heavily on eroticism while neglecting narrative structure, but others defended the work as authentic, visually striking, and bold in its embrace of female sexuality.
The film was, and in many ways remains, a powerful queer love story from an LGBTQ+ perspective, especially for women. Voided of voyeuristic storytelling common in this genre, the performances felt honest, and the filmmaking was tender.
The film’s unapologetic daring, sensuality, and portrayal of unrestrained love has led to its enduring cult status.
🔚 Conclusion
Below Her Mouth defies classification as a conventional romantic film. It focuses more on passion, discovery, and emotional authenticity. The movie makes a prominent mark in queer cinema below her mouth through its stunning performances, cinematography, and fearless directorial work.
Visually shocking montages may not meet the expectations of those looking for intricate storylines and refined dialogues, but here, the filmmakers lay bare desire’s vulnerability and intensity. This is not a motion picture made to be merely watched, but felt.
With Below Her Mouth, audences are still able to encounter a film that below her mouth daringly examines identity, romance, and the freedom that lies in discomfort. Censored boldness captures layers underneath what stands the surface, drawing sharp contrasts with the conventional.
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