Written and directed by Mal Williamson, co-written by lead actress Kelly Casey. Following the daily life of home-worker Ingrid Gagg as she copes with her grieving father, her new empty flat and the angry voices of the general public she encounters in her job for a call centre company.

There are an absolutely shocking number of health issues that countless women deal with on a day to day basis, that a majority of people don’t know about. As well as conditions they do know about, with endless side effects and long term impacts that go unspoken about. That’s why it’s great to take any opportunity to highlight them and push awareness, in the case of Lady Gagg and the Hypothalamic Pituitary Ovarian Axis, it’s the experience of peri-menopause.

However, it doesn’t feel like there’s a huge amount of confidence or focus behind the way that this story moves. Granted, the style itself plays things incredibly everyday, it’s spending enormous amounts of time on establishing the mundane, frustrating aspects of her life but that’s a big part of the problem. So much time is spent over-exploring moments that don’t have a lot to say, it works to establish her life but it didn’t need to take anywhere near as long as it does. The intention to delve into the subject is certainly there but it takes a more experimental route and quickly undermines itself.

By using that style it feels meandering and sporadic, it doesn’t allow the importance, or facts and feelings, of the issue to come through. There’s a lot of little quirks to it that give it an offbeat feel, holding it back from creating sincerity and sympathy. It’s akin to simply following an internal monologue, with all the random thoughts that pop up. However, there are a few key moments where it steps away from that and genuinely reflects women’s experiences with health professionals and the lack of help or patronisation that they find. It’s simply a shame these didn’t take a bigger role in the film.

It’s basically taking a very long time to make its vital point, to create an atmosphere that other people can relate to, and it’s possible it will have lost your attention by then. Although despite its quirks, Kelly Casey’s performance never feels outlandish or over the top, she does well to establish the insecurity, anxiety and isolation of Ingrid. She taps into a lot of issues that go along with peri-menopause like reluctance to accept help, a frustration with doctors and the envy of other women but there’s something to it that feels disconnected. It never feels like a growing story, rather a sequence of random moments.

Lady Gagg and the Hypothalamic Pituitary Ovarian Axis has admirable intentions but tries to tackle an important issue and doesn’t do it justice. It establishes a hugely everyday tone which has its value but doesn’t also provide the grounded, sincere atmosphere that you’d hope for. There is something at its foundation but it takes a road that’s very unfocused and somewhat strange which doesn’t allow that to build any further.

Verdict: ✯✯½ | 5/10

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