Martha Marcy May Marlene

Elizabeth Olsen is surprisingly dour and convincing as the main character - Martha/Marcy May/Marlene Lewis. When I read that she was the sister of the Olsen twins I wasn't sure what to expect - but she displayed none of the saccharine characteristics of Mary Kate and Ashley. She is striking-looking - perhaps this is enhanced by the beautiful cinematography of this movie. John Hawkes, as Patrick, the leader of the cult family, is great. Creepy and bizarre - he makes you cringe but you can't take your eyes off him. Louisa Krause, who played the freaked-out high school prostitute in The Babysitters, is also fun to watch as Zoe, the seeming Godsend of a friend to Martha/Marcy May in the cult family, but who is actually just as creepy as Patrick. The discomfort that Martha brings to Lucy and Ted (Sarah Paulson and Hugh Dancy) - the real-family sister and brother-in-law - is palpable, even if it is what makes the story kind of a bummer overall. The dense forests, fertile farmland, and beautiful lake are characters themselves. Martha's connection with them brings her otherwise ethereal (or maybe just spaced out or tweaked-by-something unknown) character to earth - for me it made her someone I could like and feel sympathy for, even when her relationship with Patrick and Zoe inspired not much.

I'd never heard of this and when scrolling to find a movie it popped up.

A slow, intense, psychological character study. There are some distressing scenes (sexual assault, violence) that were acted brilliantly.

The silence throughout the movie added to the intensity and put the viewer firmly into the mindset of the main character (Martha), who was excellently portrayed by Elizabeth Olsen.

Sarah Paulson (I should add I am biased towards her as she is an exquisite human) added depth and a gentleness that was required for the character of Martha to explore her situation in the scenes between them.

The aspect and post production on this was beautiful, the lighting throughout was spot on. The way that many scenes in the 'cult' were in near darkness contrasting to the light filled space once she left gave excellent visual cues and a sense of the tumultuous emotions being felt by Martha.

Would definitely watch again to see if there were background things I've missed.

Elizabeth Olsen's acting in Martha Marcy May Marlene is really fantastic (it may or may not be her first feature film, not sure which she did first this or Silent House). Her acting combined with the background we get make it easy to see how someone could be drawn into a cult - and stay for so long despite the abusiveness.

The interactions between Martha, her sister and her brother-in-law are downright strange at times but not in a 'hunh?' way at all. They're strange in a way that actually makes perfect sense for the characters and the experiences they've had.

I was really disappointed by the very, very, very end of the film - but I liked the other 100 or so minutes enough that I can forgive it (or forget about it). That and I really can't wait to see Elizabeth Olsen in something else.

I'm tempted to give Martha Marcy May Marlene a higher rating than it deserves for what it could have been, not for what it is. It boasts two young talents who are showing tons of potential - director Sean Durkin and lead actress Elizabeth Olsen; Olsen's performance is subtle and effective, and Durkin's directorial work creates a strong sense of atmosphere, which is aided by the superb cinematography of Jody Lee Lipes (who also had very little prior experience in feature length films). It's a film that looks and sounds great, but unfortunately it doesn't mesh into a satisfying experience.

It's probably because there's so much potential and so much to explore, and so little of it is actually brought to fruition, that I left the film with a bitter taste of a missed opportunity. The cult, for example, is fascinating, seductive and nightmarish, and John Hawkes delivers outstandingly, but on closer inspection it looks like a perfectly generic hippie cult of the classic Manson prototype, and we get no hints of what their philosophy actually is, or about the personalities of any of the members. The same goes for the relationship between Martha, her sister and her brother in law, and most of all the ending, which suggests some very interesting subjects which the rest of the movie doesn't really explore.

To be clear: I don't object to open endings or films that leave a lot of information out to allow viewer interpretation, but in this case I felt it was done as a cover up for lack of decision on Durkin's part - a flawed script that doesn't really feel complete. I'll definitely check out his work in the future, but this film isn't quite there yet.

Greetings again from the darkness. This one has been on my radar since the Sundance Festival and all the raves about Elizabeth Olsen's performance. After attending a screening last evening, I find myself at a loss to adequately describe not just her stunning turn, but also this unusual film from writer/director Sean Durkin.

On the surface, this sounds like just another movie peeking inside a creepy cult that brainwashes, and psychologically and physically abuses women, and is led by a charismatic (and creepy) religious style figure-head. There are many similarities to the Manson-family story of which much has been published, but Mr. Durkin takes the film in a much different and very creative direction by concentrating on what happens to Martha (Olsen) after she escapes the cult.

In the Q&A, Durkin states he did much research and found the most fascinating story to be that of a cult escapee and what she went through during her first three weeks of freedom. Martha sneaks out early one morning and places a panic call to her older sister, whom she hasn't communicated with in two years. Settling in to the lake house with big sis and new brother-in-law, it becomes quite obvious that Martha doesn't know how to fit in society and has absolutely no interest in discussing her recent past.

The sister is played very well by Sarah Paulson, and her husband is Hugh Dancy (so very good in Adam). This seemingly normal yuppie couple is trying to do right by Martha, but the fits of paranoia, outbursts of anger, and societal goofs are just too much for them.

The genius of this film is in the story telling. The cinematic toggling between today and moments of time at the cult farm house leads the viewer right into the confused mind of Martha. We don't get much back story but it's obvious she was "ripe" for cult world when she was chosen. We see how Patrick, the quietly charismatic leader, sings her a song and steals her heart ... she wants so much to belong. We also see how she bonds with the other women at the farm house, and ends up in a situation that seems to snap her out just enough so she finds the strength to leave. The editing of scenes between these two worlds in outstanding and serve to keep the viewer glued to the screen.

Last year I raved about an independent film called Winter's Bone. I chose it as one of the year's best and it ended with some industry award recognition. I am not willing to say this film is quite at that level, but I will say that the younger sister of the Olsen twins, Elizabeth, delivers an incredible first feature film performance and Sean Durkin deserves an audience for his first feature film as writer/director. Another bond between the two indies is that John Hawkes plays the cult leader Patrick, and Hawkes was a standout in Winter's Bone.

There will undoubtedly be some debate about whether this is cutting edge independent filmmaking or just another snooty art-house mind-messer. All I can say is, I hope the film grabs enough audience for the debate to matter ... it deserves it.