BBC, 2 February 2012
Entertainment & Arts
'Cult' film explores sect secrets
By Emma Jones
First seen at Sundance last year, Martha Marcy May Marlene has been a talking point ever since for its unsettling look at a young woman haunted by her time as a member of a cult-like group.
The names of such 'cult' leaders as Charles Manson, Jim Jones and David Koresh conjure up some of the most dramatic news images of the 20th Century.
Yet new UK release Martha Marcy May Marlene may be one of the first dramatic features to explore what happens in this highly secretive world.
A young woman, Martha, makes a phone call to the older sister whom she has not seen for two years, asking to be picked up in the middle of rural New England.
The camera follows the next few weeks in her life, as Martha - played by 22-year-old Elizabeth Olsen - undergoes a crisis of identity.
She has escaped a cult-like farming community and is trapped by unsettling memories of her recent past.
She is consumed with fear, paranoia and guilt. She is also convinced that "they" are coming to reclaim her.
"I don't think much has been made on these groups before as it's very difficult to get anyone to talk about their experiences," explains writer-director Sean Durkin.
'Naturalistic'
"Yet the power these utopian-like cults exert [is] something that fascinates many of us."
Durkin was so interested in the subject he made a short film, Mary Last Seen, before embarking on Martha, his first feature.
John Hawkes (l) plays Patrick, the film's charismatic cult leader
"I wanted to avoid the cliches about religious groups, where everyone is brainwashed," he says.
"I feel these cults are often portrayed as an over-the-top caricature of themselves and I wanted to make something a little more naturalistic and subtle.
"I want the audience to understand their attraction, and why Martha gets involved in the first place."
During his extensive research, Durkin came across one particular true story that "just jumped out".
"It was the story of a young girl who had just left a cult that was just becoming more and more violent.
"I wondered how on earth anyone could settle back into normal society in the weeks following their departure."
Yet it was a personal friend who provided the film-maker with most of his insight into the story of Martha Marcy May Marlene.
"A friend confessed to me she had been involved in one of these groups and she very generously told me her story," he says.
"It had taken her years of therapy before she felt ready to share it."
Olsen - the younger sister of famous twins Mary-Kate and Ashley - had her own views on cults which changed during the making of the film.
'Terrifying'
"I have only now understood how someone might actually become involved in one of these groups," the actress says.
"I always thought of them as 'those crazy Manson people'. But this made me realise how easily it could happen.
Sean Durkin (l) first explored cults in his 2010 short Mary Last Seen
"Martha is an intelligent young woman, and what is real and terrifying about the film is that it's not so outlandish."
According to Durkin, Martha Marcy May Marlene was conceived as "more of a psychological thriller".
"I wanted to make a more complicated scenario where Martha is struggling with the guilt she feels for her participation in this group."
The story of her experience is told in flashbacks that show how her initial acceptance into the sect is slowly mixed with sexual abuse and violence.
Patrick, the leader of the cult, is played by John Hawkes, who was nominated for an Oscar last year for his work in Winter's Bone.
"I wanted him to have charisma, to be charming, just like we know people like Koresh and Manson must have been initially," says Durkin.
"He has attractive qualities, such as idealism in the face of materialistic values, and even musical talent which gives him a lot of appeal."
"Patrick sings Martha a love song on his guitar and re-christens her 'Marcy May' and later 'Marlene'," continues Olsen.
"It's all so charming and plausible. If you were a teenage girl, wouldn't you fall under his spell?"
'Dislocated'
According to Olsen, organisations like the one featured in the film appeal to a need for community and belonging that many people crave.
"People don't get sucked into these groups because they look bad from the outset. There's always something good at the beginning that is being offered, like love, community and acceptance.
Olsen was back at Sundance this year with two new films, Red Lights and Liberal Arts
"Then the abuse starts. But if there are people around you telling you the abuse is okay, your view of what is normal and acceptable changes."
Martha Marcy May Marlene premiered at the Sundance Film Festival a year ago, where it picked up a directing prize.
Yet Olsen has also been singled out for praise for her performance and had been mooted as a potential Oscar nominee. She is still in the running for best actress at the Independent Spirit Awards in LA on 25 February.
"I hope I've done her justice," says the actress. "I know how dislocated Martha must have felt because after our weeks of filming the crew had become a family to me.
"Then I was required to do my first really emotional scene, at a big party. Basically, it's one long shot of me having a nervous breakdown.
"They had hired in a lot of extras for that day and I found it really hard to function outside the security of my new 'family'."
Martha Marcy May Marlene is out in the UK on 3 February.
© BBC 2012
female first, 03 February 2012
Top Cult Movies
The secretive and illusive nature of cults has been depicted in cinema for decades. Human curiosity has looked at these mysterious organisations in a variety of screenplays, examining cults’ religious devotions and obsessions.
To chime with the release of Martha Marcy May Marlene (out 3rd February), FemaleFirst has collated the best of cinema’s cult films
10. Indiana Jones and Temple of Doom
The second Indy film directed by Steven Spielberg follows the legendary Dr. Jones (Ford), who travels to an Indian village where the natives believe spirits have nabbed their children because of a sacrosanct jewel that was stolen.
The film has actually ripened with age and is now revered by critics, whereas, on its release, Temple of Doom was criticised for excessive on-screen violence.
The release was originally a controversial subject because of its depiction of Indian culture (India temporarily banned the movie), particularly because Temple of Doom illustrates Indian villagers’ appetite for human sacrifice, snakes, eyeballs and monkey brain.
9. Witness
Another ‘80s classic that stars Harris Ford; Witness centres on an American detective who makes it his purpose to protect a young Amish boy besieged by a merciless killer after bearing witness to a homicide in Philadelphia.
Detective John Book (Ford), returns with the boy to an Amish commune and develops romantic feelings for the kid’s mother. Glittering with Academy Awards, BAFTAs and Golden Globes, Witness illustrates Amish traditionalism conflicting with the progression of a modern society.
8. Ticket to Heaven
Released in 1981, this Canadian production is based on the non-fiction book Moonwebs, which speaks of cultist experiences. The movie follows the lead, David Kappel, a young man, who travels to San Francisco following a devastating breakup with his girlfriend.
Out in the country side, David notices an unusual summer camp; intrigued by the impenetrable walls of the camp and wooed by the etiquette of all who attend, David makes it his mission to gain access.
The audience then witnesses the extremist tactics of a cultist organisation and brainwashing and torture transform David into an entirely different person.
7. Children of the Corn
Based on Stephen King’s short story, Children of the Corn horrifies audiences using a young male protagonist who visits a Nebraskan town and orders kids to murder the adult inhabitants.
As the town’s streets become eerily desolate, the kids pray to a celestial force in the corn fields. Fritz Kiersh’s adaptation
6. Eyes Wide Shut
Directed by Stanley Kubrick, Eyes Wide Shut co-starred Hollywood’s favourite couple, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. The film depicts a certain Dr. Harford (Cruise), who develops an obsession with adultery after uncovering his wife’s lust for another man.
After a wild night on the town, Hardford hears of a sexual organisation and attends one of their meetings. What started as Harford’s hunger for sexual gratification quickly turns into nightmare, and this gripping thriller sketches the full effects of orgiastic chaos.
5. Suspiria
Recognised as one of the scariest films to come out of Italian cinema, the camera follows an American dancer who joins a European ballet school. Straight from the start, a brutal and violent murder takes place in the school.
The film’s protagonist soon realises that the school doesn’t actually practice ballet; instead, the school is a front for an abhorrent organisation with a thirst for bloody murder.
The caption on the movie poster says, "The only thing more terrifying than the first 80 minutes of Suspiria... is the last 10". And they weren’t lying.
4. Disturbing Behaviour
Starring the young Katie Holmes and released in 1998, Disturbing Behaviour is a sci-fi questioning a town’s teenage rehabilitation program. There is just something rather odd about the school psychologist and his 'special program'.
3. Fight Club
Fight Club has its own cult following, which is ironic when the film focuses on group obedience to a particular cause. Fed up with consumer need and greed, Jack (Norton) attends gloomy self-help groups until he meets Tyler Durden (Pitt).
Together, the pair create a violent, sadistic organisation that is intent on causing the destruction of society. Fight Club is recognised as one of the best novel adaptations and illustrates submission and deference, even in the face of death.
2. Holy Smoke
Unhappy with society’s dysfunctionality, Ruth (Winslet) leaves suburbia for Indian tranquillity. However, worried for their daughter, Ruth’s family hire the esteemed P.J. Waters (Keitel), who claims to be able to reverse brainwashed hippies.
Waters takes Ruth to an isolated spot in the Australian Outback, and the two leads battle one another for domination. Stunning on-screen chemistry produces sexually charged performances from Keitel and Winslet.
1. Martha Marcy May Marlene
Marcy May (Elizabeth Olsen) suffers harrowing flashbacks of her abusive and incestuous past. This film illustrates the complete defilation of a person’s identity, perhaps best depicted when Patrick (Hawkes) casually renames Marcy May after a horrific rape scene.
The film’s examination of psychological repression and the effects of abuse are poignant and eye-watering. And Olsen’s haunting performance will leave the viewer with a wrinkled brow.
Martha Marcy May Marlene is out now
© female first p.1 - female first p.2 2012
