Sep 21, 20231 min read

Film REVIEW: The Nettle Dress (2023) - ★★★★

Director: Dylan Hewitt

Genre: Documentary

After the death of his beloved wife, textile artist Allan Brown embarks on a seven-year endeavor to weave a hand-spun dress from stinging nettles foraged in the woods surrounding his home.

Stewart: ★★★★

"A quietly gorgeous nature fuelled documentary as textile artist Allan Brown is followed over the course of 7 years in his quest of creating a dress made from the nettles he forages in a local forest. The cinematography is lovely as we are soaked in the nature of the forest as Brown begins his vision. Along the way he experiences his own loss of loved one's and finds a sort of emotional release in his almost obsession with creating this dress. Along the way his lovely dog, Molly (who steals every scene she appears in) is by his side.

There isn't an awful lot of psychological insight or query into the effect this streamlined focus on his craft has on his family or career. What we do have is quite an immersive, almost fairytale love letter to nature and it's effect on grief and healing."

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