This film is probably one of the most difficult things I have ever had to sit through. It’s rough and daring, it’s bold and bombastic, it’s messy and full of ambition, it is filmmaking as we have never seen before, done on such a level that it really is quite difficult to digest in just one sitting. The film is directed by Mona Fastvold, who co-wrote The Brutalist with her partner Brady Corbet. This film is based on the life of Ann Lee in the 1700’s, who created a cult believing that she was the second coming of Jesus Christ. The film leans heavily into Shaker culture and features songs inspired by Shaker hymns, modernised to appeal to modern audiences.
The story follows the life of Ann Lee (Amanda Seyfried) and begins with the details of how she came into the world at birth and her family, which is all wonderfully narrated by Mary Partingon (Thomasin McKenzie), exploring her connection with her brother William (Lewis Pullman) and their ever-growing family as her father enjoys repeated intercourse with her mother and the children keep coming. Ann sees this as a formative moment, through her mind’s association of physical intimacy with bad things. This is only fueled further as she marries a blacksmith, Abraham (Christopher Abbott), who finds a Kama Sutra-like book, convincing Ann to engage in a little 1800’s kink.
Ann is a hard worker, finding solace in weaving at her loom as well as working in the kitchens in the local lock up for charity. She discovers a group called “Shaking Quakers” think Hillsong/Planet Shakers in the 18th century who sing, dance and speak in tongues. Ann becomes completely entranced with this, she starts having dreams about her own destiny, all the while having kids with her Abraham, all of whom never make it past the first year of their birth. It’s as gut-wrenching and traumatic as it sounds, with Seyfried working overtime here to deliver the impact of losing a child, let alone multiple ones.
When Ann has recovered, her vision and self-belief that she is the second coming of their lord and saviour, as the first visit was male, and their firm belief that God is both male and female, it only makes sense that the second coming would be female. Her outrageous days-long dance and devotion sessions attract attention (and a lot of noise complaints!), which results in her being locked up several times. Convinced that their neighbours (sort of) in the USA need a revolution, Ann finds a follower with deep pockets who bankrolls her followers’ long ship journey from the UK to the USA.
Once here, they work on building a base, after losing some followers along the way due to Anne’s strict no-physical-intimacy rule, which she believes breaks their connection to the almighty. Through this strict process, she loses her husband Abraham and her niece and friend, who succumb to their desires of the flesh and lose their position in the fellowship.
It’s really hard to pigeonhole this movie’s genre. At times it’s a full-blown musical, at times a Hamlet-style drama and at other times almost a horror film. This is mimicked by Fasvold’s direction and camera cuts, which whip back and forth as they need to, while lingering in the quieter moments to let the setting and what’s happening in the world around them really sink in. When they first arrive in America, Ann’s shocked response to the selling of african slaves in a public auction feels soft and underplayed here. Having Ann as a strong-willed woman in this time in history, who appears completely unshakeable despite everything that is thrown at her, helps to overlook the culty aspects of her personality, which could make her appear more problematic than revolutionary. This is only helped by Seyfried’s performance who is giving everything she has here. The way her body moves and reacts to her family, her spiritually inspired Shaker chants and her command of the screen is truly a career-defining performance (how this got 0 nominations in the major awards is baffling to me!)
The musical numbers, while modern, are inspired and while you won’t be loading up the soundtrack on Apple Music anytime soon, they do offer a modern take on the traditional Shaker hymns that feel cinematic and are planted in appropriate scenes to emphasise Ann’s ambition and the dedication of her followers.
The Testament of Ann Lee is a triumph in filmmaking. It is uninterested in conforming to any traditional filmmaking method or formula, instead happy to carve out its own path, keeping our entire audience on the edge of their seats for the entire film. Seyfried positions herself front and centre, allowing for the boldness of this character to be showcased by a career-defining performance. Behind the camera, Fastvold masterfully weaves what is essentially a biopic into a new way of storytelling that will shock, entertain and inspire.
The Testament of Ann Lee is in cinemas February 26th via 20th Century Studios.
