Bronstein, a bit of a cult figure in the film world, made her directorial debut in 2008 at the SXSW festival with “Yeast,” which featured a pre-fame Greta Gerwig and was hailed by by New Yorker critic Richard Brody as a “mumblecore classic.”

What will surely go down as one the most stressful movies of the year is “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” which premiered Friday at the Sundance Film Festival.

"If I Had Legs I'd Kick You" premiered at Sundance 2025. The brutal film, starring Rose Byrne, features Conan O'Brien shifting into a dramatic role.

Sundance: After Mary Bronstein's exhilarating, big-screen anxiety attack premiered, co-star Conan O'Brien said he's surprised the amazing Byrne wasn't hospitalized after filming.

From left, Conan O'Brien, Mary Bronstein and Rose Byrne attend the premiere of "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You" during the Sundance Film Festival on Friday at Library Theatre

Contrary to its title, everyone in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You has their appendages. Rose Byrne’s protagonist, however, does have a wealth of problems and neuroses, and writer/director Mary Bronstein dives into her headspace with a full-bore intensity and immediacy that’s bracing at first,