Pieces of a Woman

Martha and Sean are expecting their first child. Martha goes into labour and Sean calls their midwife, Barbara; she is unavailable and sends another midwife, Eva, in her place. Martha struggles with nausea and pain during contractions and, when she reaches ten centimetres, Eva realises the baby's heart rate has dropped dangerously low. Sean asks Eva if they are safe to continue and Eva says yes. Martha soon gives birth to a baby girl. Eva then notices the baby is turning blue and attempts to revive her, but she goes into cardiac arrest and dies.

The following month, Martha and Sean attend an appointment with a coroner; Sean is eager to find out what went wrong, while Martha is reluctant. They learn the cause of death has not yet been established but are told they were able to determine that the baby was in a low-oxygen environment and have started proceedings against Eva. Sean leaves, overcome with emotion, while Martha remains and decides that she wants to donate the baby's body to science.

Martha's relationship with Sean continues to struggle, as well as with her overbearing mother Elizabeth who wants to bury the baby and have a funeral. Both Martha and Sean remain deeply depressed. Sean later starts to have an affair with Martha's cousin, Suzanne, and begins using cocaine after being sober for almost seven years. Suzanne, who also is the attorney prosecuting Eva, informs him that a potential lawsuit against Eva could be very lucrative.

Elizabeth blames Martha for the baby's death because she decided to have a home birth, and also tells her she has to attend Eva's trial. Elizabeth then tells Sean she never liked him. She offers him money to leave and never return. Martha drops Sean off at the airport and he leaves for Seattle.

Months later, Martha testifies at Eva's trial. Afterwards, the judge allows her to address the court, in which she states that Eva is not at fault for the death and she does not blame her. Back home, she discovers that apple seeds she started in her refrigerator have started to sprout. A month later Martha scatters her daughter's ashes into the river.

Years later, a little girl climbs an apple tree. Martha helps her down and the two go inside together.

In October 2019, it was announced Vanessa Kirby and Shia LaBeouf had joined the cast of the film, with Kornél Mundruczó directing from a screenplay by his partner Kata Wéber. The film is based on the 2018 play of the same name, also by Wéber and Mundruczó, which in turn was based on their own experience losing a child to an unsuccessful pregnancy,[5] as well as taking elements from the trial of Hungarian midwife Ágnes Geréb.[6] Wéber submitted the script to the Hungarian National Film Fund, but did not get support, later an American producer picked it up.[7]

Sam Levinson and Martin Scorsese serve as executive producers on the film.[8] In December 2019, Jimmie Fails, Ellen Burstyn, Molly Parker and Iliza Shlesinger joined the cast of the film.[9][10] In January 2020, Sarah Snook and Benny Safdie joined the cast of the film.[11] Howard Shore composed the film's score.[12]

The film had its world premiere at the 77th Venice International Film Festival in official competition on September 4, 2020.[17] Shortly after, Netflix acquired worldwide distribution rights to the film.[18] It also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival in late September 2020.[19]

Pieces of a Woman was released in select theaters on December 30, 2020, before beginning to digitally stream on Netflix on January 7, 2021.[20][21] Upon its digital release, it was the most-watched film over its first three days of release, and finished second overall in its debut weekend.[22]

Vanessa Kirby's performance garnered widespread critical acclaim.

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 76% based on 206 reviews, with an average rating of 6.8/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Pieces of a Woman struggles to maintain momentum after a stunning opening act, but Vanessa Kirby's performance makes the end result a poignant portrait of grief."[23] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 66 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[24]

Xan Brooks of The Guardian gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing: "Viewed as an acting masterclass, the film is bruisingly impressive in its way. The principal actors raise the roof; each gets to do their big turn for the camera. But it feels a little schooled, a little staged, like a workshop at the Actors' Studio; this impression isn't helped by the over-insistent score, which drops like a lead weight after each full-throated exchange."[25]

Writing for Variety, Peter Debruge said, "But this is ultimately Kirby's movie, as the stage marvel (better known to audiences for her work on The Crown) delivers her most impressive screen performance to date—not just the remarkable commitment of that childbirth scene, but the way she navigates the character's uncertainty for the rest of the movie."[26] The Hollywood Reporter's David Rooney said that "those with the stomach for a forcefully acted representation of the gut-wrenching impact and long-range after-effects of sudden infant death will be rewarded with moments both powerful and affecting."[27]

• Pieces of a Woman at IMDb
• Pieces of a Woman at Rotten Tomatoes
• Pieces of a Woman on Netflix