I watched this film last month in Salt Lake City at the Sundance Film Festival. Even though I didn't find it particularly entertaining, I noticed this Jury Award winner for directing had no user review yet, so I thought I'd throw in my two cents' worth.
The film starts out with the lead character Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) running away from what seems to be a self-sustaining rural establishment of several youths led by a middle aged man (John Hawkes), and trying to rediscover herself as she seeks shelter under her older sister's roof. The story then unfolds in two convoluted threads; one that takes place in reality where she tries to adapt to her sister's and brother-in-law's high-maintenance life, and one that harks back to the memories of the cult that exploited her in the name of a meaningful relationship. As the boundary between the two threads becomes vague, we see Martha plunge into abysmal depression, to make us all fret that she may be already damaged beyond the point of no repair.
The depiction of the main character's endless descent is a turn off for a casual film watcher like myself, who'd like to see a glimmer of hope in the most depressing of films. However, there is no denying the film is well-executed, shot in serene rustic settings with grappling performances by the cast.
Elizabeth Olsen swings back and forth between Martha's normal and abnormal moments with great authenticity. Not only she is effortless in doing so, she also hints at sibling rivalry with a terrific nuance. This film should put her on "25 emerging actresses under 25" or some similar lists if she hasn't been recognized yet.
Fans of John Hawkes's will not be disappointed, as he gives another solid performance as a backwoods haggard, but this time sans the heroic aura he had in Winter's Bone. In one scene, he even takes the guitar out and serenades Martha with disturbingly eloquent lyrics.
The director, Sean Durkin, is certainly on top of his game and succeeds in just showing the "basic human needs to belong to a group." However, what he expects us to take away from the film is not entirely clear to me. I just hope he uses his great skills for more pleasant themes in the future.
The film starts out with the lead character Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) running away from what seems to be a self-sustaining rural establishment of several youths led by a middle aged man (John Hawkes), and trying to rediscover herself as she seeks shelter under her older sister's roof. The story then unfolds in two convoluted threads; one that takes place in reality where she tries to adapt to her sister's and brother-in-law's high-maintenance life, and one that harks back to the memories of the cult that exploited her in the name of a meaningful relationship. As the boundary between the two threads becomes vague, we see Martha plunge into abysmal depression, to make us all fret that she may be already damaged beyond the point of no repair.
The depiction of the main character's endless descent is a turn off for a casual film watcher like myself, who'd like to see a glimmer of hope in the most depressing of films. However, there is no denying the film is well-executed, shot in serene rustic settings with grappling performances by the cast.
Elizabeth Olsen swings back and forth between Martha's normal and abnormal moments with great authenticity. Not only she is effortless in doing so, she also hints at sibling rivalry with a terrific nuance. This film should put her on "25 emerging actresses under 25" or some similar lists if she hasn't been recognized yet.
Fans of John Hawkes's will not be disappointed, as he gives another solid performance as a backwoods haggard, but this time sans the heroic aura he had in Winter's Bone. In one scene, he even takes the guitar out and serenades Martha with disturbingly eloquent lyrics.
The director, Sean Durkin, is certainly on top of his game and succeeds in just showing the "basic human needs to belong to a group." However, what he expects us to take away from the film is not entirely clear to me. I just hope he uses his great skills for more pleasant themes in the future.