Writer-director Mary Bronstein and star Rose Byrne dissect the anxieties of motherhood in A24’s upcoming dramedy If I Had Legs I’d Kick You.
The film introduces Linda (Byrne), a mother on the verge of a nervous breakdown. She’s trying to understand her young daughter’s (Delaney Quinn) illness, her husband is always traveling, and her waterlogged bathroom has collapsed into her bedroom. On top of all that, she’s feuding with her exasperated therapist (Conan O’Brien), who tells her in the trailer that no, he won’t be answering the emails she sends him about her dreams.
‘If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You’ review: Rose Byrne stuns in nauseating thrill ride about motherhood
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You had its world premiere at 2025’s Sundance Film Festival, to critical acclaim. The accolades didn’t stop there, though, as the film also played 2025’s Berlin International Film Festival, where it was in competition for the Golden Bear for best film. Byrne took home the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance. The film is also slated to screen at 2025’s upcoming Toronto International Film Festival and New York Film Festival, positioning it as a possible awards contender.
In his review out of Sundance, Mashable writer Siddhant Adlakha heaped praise on If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, writing that, “it’s a deeply anxiety-inducing work, whose high-strung energy is owed to a daring audio-visual approach that ought not to be sustainable, but ends up hair-raising and hilarious in the long run. The result, in a word, is excellent.”
The film also stars Danielle Macdonald and A$AP Rocky.
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You will play at the Toronto International Film Festival and the New York Film Festival. It hits theaters Oct. 10.