'The Testament of Ann Lee'-Has The Spirit of The Lord
Feeling shaky? The Shaker movement sure had more shakes than a tamorine. The Testament of Ann Lee, however, has a measure of empathy about religion that is not often seen in movies. It’s one of those movies about religion that takes a measured, even-handed approach rather than promoting or condemning it. It's about the positive, non-violent ideas religion can carry, while it also can inadvertently lead to a form of cultism. If you like musicals, then this movie may not be for you.
Despite being labeled a musical, there's something very diegetic about The Testament of Ann Lee's music that would make Wicked fans plead for creatively bankrupt musical numbers that do nothing to advance the story, elongating an already overextended narrative. In fairness to the Wicked fans (which seems to be everyone on the globe except me), this movie is, in fact, too long, with some musical numbers that don't blend with the movie's overall style.
Most of the music isn't trying to show the audience an unnatural, unilateral coordination between characters. Rather, the singing is, in fact, part of the Shaker’s ritual and the story. The music is natural. Until it's not. There are scenes where characters are singing on their own, or doing a number together for a song that just came from the top of the dome instead of a rehearsed piece.
The music is part of the Sharker’s sermon. When these sequences happen, it feels natural. So why not just stick to that? The film is reliant on a strong lead performance. Amanda Seyfried rises to the occasion. Seyfried's British accent doesn't sound off, at least from a Yankee who can't tell accents apart. An accent doesn't make a solid performance. Except it's noticeable when it's bad in a movie. Ms. Heard's singing is quite impressive. Not great. She's no Cynthia Erivo, but it's soothing, regardless. If only there were fewer musical numbers, would this film's themes land.
Ann Lee leads the Shaker movement. Her life has been filled with pain. She has seen sinners do horrific things as a child, yet she yields to her religious movement towards forgiveness as an adult. The Shakers believe that God is neither male nor female and that preachers can be women. Even as someone who doesn't ascribe to any organized religion, Lee's viewpoints are justifiable. Why do we imagine God as a man when we've seen men do such terrible things? It's always men who lash out in murderous acts of violence, hardly the women. If God were to exist as a man, he could very well be a vengeful entity.
Secondly, why can't women be priests? Why are they still mysogiynistcally relegated to being Nuns? Is it not often our mothers, instead of our fathers, who are the compassionate ones? Shouldn't they share the altar for our confessions? From the outside, the convulsive dancing appears to be the type of performative religion commonly seen in megachurches. Except here, you can see that exercising the body helps free the mind. Director Mona Fastvold makes even the non-religious understand the logic behind a religion.
The vow of celibacy that many catholics take, which yields to extremely tragic results, makes sense in the context of this story. Ann Lee has experienced terrible things beyond rape that would make someone in her position vow against the pleasure of the skin. Yet, we also know that celibacy can make one go crazy. Release is natural. It's what breeds life and keeps us calm. But what happens when you see so much life taken from you as a result of intercorse?
The Testament of Ann Lee is unique, yet it is too long and repetitive. By the fifth dance number, the film becomes too bloated. Its ideas are communicative and grand. The lead performance is a knockout. Yet, its longevity overstays its welcome in a film that would be much more effective if it were half its current length. The movie might be worth seeing on the big screen, as everything appears to be underexposed. It's really difficult to see what's going on. For what it's worth, there aren't many films that are as compassionate, celebratory, yet critical of an organized religion, and that's worth something.
‘The Testament of Ann Lee’ releases wide theaters on January 16
