“Time is for dragonflies and angels. The former live too little and the latter live too long.” — James Thurber, The 13 Clocks
Dragonflies have short yet beautiful lives, but their time on earth is nothing compared to the endlessness of angels. Throwing audiences into Dragonfly with a quote of this magnitude gives them a hint as to where the film may lead. In his statement, James Thurber suggests that while some people’s lives are too short and others too long, the “time” spent living those lives can be completely different.
In Paul Andrew Williams’ latest film Dragonfly he explores this concept in a dark and twisted manor. No audience member could expect what is to unravel as the film proceeds and by the end you might be left with more questions than answers. Following the lives of two women has this idea of living differently come to the forefront. Without this hint as to where he wanted to take the film dropped by the quote at the beginning, the viewer might have been more lost that Williams would have wanted them to be.
Two neighbours in a small British town find their lives changed when they begin to get to know each other. Elsie (Brenda Blethyn) is a neglected pensioner who lives alone and rarely sees her son and his family. On the other side of the town house is Colleen (Andrea Riseborough) a tough and independent woman who receives government funding and lives with her big dog. As Colleen witnesses the neglect Elsie experiences even through the nurses paid to help her, she decides she will take over and the two begin to care for one another.
As Dragonfly is a study into the idea of life and time spent on earth by individuals, its no wonder it becomes reliant on characters and their actors. Riseborough falls into her character Colleen all too easily, it becomes somewhat creepy. Though, that just shows the talent of the actor. From the beginning, the audience is given the feeling of cynicism through Colleen and wonders what her true motives are. Riseborough plays her character with a childlike quality that becomes further explained once the audience gets to know Colleen more as the plot unfolds. However, with the dog involved in this neighbourly relationship, there is an unknown tension there. In Elsie, Blethyn creates a mother/grandmotherly figure for Colleen. For those in the audience who have mothers or grandmothers like this, it becomes all too familiar.
As a viewer, Dragonfly gives you so many times to question what is going on? Or even what will happen next? And even why? It becomes such a slow burn that there is no fast paced elements to entirely keep you hooked. But perhaps this is where the writing comes into play. To create a story that seems so dull but keeps you confused requires the audience to pay attention.
Though it may feel like Dragonfly is a successful film, it comes crashing down at the end. Not only are truths revealed about Elsie and Colleen, but the film itself unravels completely. Sometimes it works leaving an ambiguous ending for the audience to interpret. In the case of Dragonfly, however, there is not even an ambiguous ending. It becomes crafted into something that is all too complex and dark for the rest of the film and changes the narrative completely. It could have been the case that this storyline makes sense to some by the end, but for others, you have no idea what just happened.
Another Tribeca Film Festival world premiere film that is perhaps all too “indie” for its own good. Though it does include emotional performances from its two leads, it does lack by the end. Dragonfly premiered at the Leeds International Film Festival on Saturday November 1st, 2025 before heading to cinemas nationwide in the UK on the 7th. If you are seeking something interesting, to say the least, Dragonfly might just be for you. That, or if you enjoy a good character study as well. As James Thurber’s quote on dragonflies makes us all think, what happens with the time we use, and is the right person ever given the right amount?
