Tuesday 7 February 2012

REVIEW: Martha Marcy May Marlene (15)

Martha Marcy May Marlene may not be the snappiest of movie titles I've ever come across, and, I must confess, I had to read it from the wall behind the cashier when buying my ticket, but the movie, a tense, dark, emotional piece of indie cinema, is far more memorable than the title!



Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) runs away from a cult in the Catskills where she has been physically and psychologically abused over a period of about two years, losing all contact with her family. She phones her sister, Lucy (Sarah Paulson), who takes her to the lakeside holiday home she rents with her husband, Ted (Hugh Dancy) who is a successful, wealthy and priggish Brit!



It is instantly obvious that Martha is deeply troubled and scarred by her experience at the cult and the abuse dealt out by high sinister Patrick (John Hawkes), a terrifyingly authoritative cult leader who renames all his followers (Martha is renamed "Marcy May").

The action zips back and forth between the present, at the lakeside house, to her time at the cult's farm and gives several moments of ambiguity as a result of the sudden juxtaposition that is occurring in Martha's confused and damaged mind.

The movie is scary and creepy and unsettling and, at times, uncomfortable viewing but, having said that, it is gripping and a riveting watch which has won a number of awards including Best Director for Sean Durkin at the Sundance Festival.

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