THE STORY – An epic fable inspired by the life of Ann Lee, the founder of the Shakers, a radical religious movement that began in the late 1700s.
THE CAST – Amanda Seyfried, Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, Stacy Martin, Tim Blake Nelson, Christopher Abbott, Matthew Beard, Scott Handy, Jamie Bogyo, Viola Prettejohn & David Cale
THE TEAM – Mona Fastvold (Director/Writer) & Brady Corbet (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 130 Minutes
For us non-believers, it can be easy to be skeptical of the faithful. Organized religion is used far more often as a tool to oppress and not as a way to bring people closer together. The secular-minded may therefore react with suspicion to the idea of a contemporary biography of Ann Lee, the woman who founded the Christian sect known as the Shakers and brought it from England to America in the 1770s. But worry not, o ye of little faith. With “The Testament of Ann Lee,” filmmaker Mona Fastvold (director of the extremely underrated “The World to Come“) has made a passionate, powerful ode to believing in and holding tight to what we know to be right, crafted with a distinct eye for beauty and – ironically – unshakably assured in its convictions, much like the title character herself. And it’s a musical!
Ann Lee is artistically resurrected by Amanda Seyfried. She’s a young woman in eighteenth-century Manchester, meaning her opportunities are obviously very limited. But from a young age, she begins to develop a very clear set of personal morals, fueled by a distrust of the oppressive church. As she grows, she meets her eventual husband, Abraham (Christopher Abbott), who subjects her to sadomasochistic sexual acts in the name of religious piety. But after suffering through the deaths of four children before they reach the age of 1, Ann finds herself turning to a different type of religious organization – the Wardleys, a branch of the vibrant Christian sect the Quakers, so called for the bodily undulations that seemingly overtake them at moments of overwhelming spiritual connection. Ann quickly grows attached to the community and begins to experience religiously tinged visions. From these holy hallucinations, she surmises that the most important sacrifice that humans must make for God is to renounce the sin of fornication and give up sex entirely. After spending a night in jail for her disruptive practices, she becomes convinced that she is the next incarnation of Christ. She gathers her followers, the newly founded branch called the Shakers, who refer to her as Mother Ann, or simply “Mother,” and, to flee persecution, departs for the New World in hopes of spreading their message, just as that country is on the brink of its own independence.
The film clearly follows a standard biographical structure, beginning with Lee’s childhood and ending with her death at 48. But Fastvold is far from a typical filmmaker, and as anyone who saw last year’s “The Brutalist“ – which, like this film, she wrote with her partner in work and in life Brady Corbet – could tell you, Fastvold’s taste favors the epic in scale and structure but the humane and personal in perspective. The film is narrated after Lee’s death by one of her closest friends and followers (Thomasin McKenzie), giving viewers the feeling of being one of the faithful themselves, being told the inspiring story of their organization’s founder.
Fastvold’s film is a visual feast, conveying a sense of spiritual wonder through the gorgeous 70mm cinematography. Mostly lit with natural light and candles (which, unfortunately, makes the nighttime scenes a bit difficult to comprehend), some truly stunning shots give the audience the same feeling of awe that the devout must experience when marveling at their god’s creation. Fastvold also favors long takes, especially in the invigorating group numbers. These sequences of religious ecstasy are incredibly dynamic, pairing nicely with the similarly passionate performance scenes from this year’s “Sinners.“ Celia Rowlson-Hall’s choreography is mesmerizingly exertive, effectively extending the trembling movements of the Shakers into something resembling modern dance. Limbs fly, heads toss back, and hands trace invisible lines in the air. Fastvold often shoots the moments when the congregants join together in circular motions from above, evoking, of all things, Busby Berkeley’s films.
And the music that accompanies these numbers is plaintive, soulful, and simply beautiful. Daniel Blumberg, who won an Oscar earlier this year for scoring “The Brutalist,“ adapts traditional Shaker hymns for the film’s songs, tying these centuries-old themes and melodies into his gorgeous score. The music is earthy and evocative, featuring sparse and haunting instrumentation. It even sounds eerie at times, giving the film a sense of mystery that ties into the themes of religious and spiritual doubt—the antithesis of faith, which is necessary for belief to have its full power. As can be expected based on their hymnal origins, the songs feature circular lyrics that repeat over and over again, eventually resembling a chanted mantra. But thanks to the committed performances of the cast, these unchanging refrains never become numbing, instead deepening and becoming even more zealously delivered – and therefore more impactful – with each repetition.
Seyfried makes for a highly sympathetic, strikingly portrayed central figure. Her big eyes fill with wonder in moments of spiritual rapture, giving credence to her stated visions and subsequent interpretations of these otherworldly sights. Her singing voice, as heard in “Les Misérables“ and the “Mamma Mia!“ films, lends itself well to Blumberg’s musical stylings. She sounds like a siren, calling followers to gather around her through the conviction in her voice, which flickers and trills like a traditional Old World folk singer. Seyfried convincingly depicts Lee’s firmly held beliefs, and it never feels as if she’s saying anything to those around her that isn’t completely based on her inner truth (even when the film subtly indicates otherwise – it’s very fortunate and convenient that her visions indicate that she must stop having uncomfortable, unwanted sex with her selfish husband). She gets several showcase sequences as a singer, actor, and singing actor. One emotional montage shows her giving painful birth and subsequently grieving the deaths of her four children. And the song she performs when imprisoned – “I Hunger and Thirst“ – is captured in one long take with the camera pushed in close on Seyfried’s face. She manages to find emotional variation in each repeated four-word chorus, fully selling the idea that Lee is coming to a life-changing spiritual conclusion. As befitting Lee’s place of birth, Seyfried adopts a Mancunian accent, which seems to vary in strength at times. It’s a tricky dialect to pull off effectively as a non-native, and although it’s not entirely successful, it never distracts.
Fastvold herself doesn’t share Lee’s specific faith, but she clearly admires her steadfastness and passion. This respectful appreciation is evident in her beautiful film, which captures the vibrant faithfulness of the Shaker congregants and conveys that energy in a way that makes viewers feel similarly enraptured. Regardless of one’s beliefs—or lack thereof—”The Testament of Ann Lee“ is an undeniably moving and inspirational story of holding true to one’s convictions and finding strength in a like-minded community, effectively brought into the 21st century through powerful, stirring music.
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