In the profoundly mystifying Sound of My Voice, eccentric and virtuoso indie actor/writer extraordinaire Brit Marling proves once again that she is a force to be reckoned with. Even though it’s not as ambitious and penetrating as that impressive piece of independent, no-budget filmmaking, 2011’s masterpiece (my personal favorite movie of that year) Another Earth, she and director Zal Batmanglij still succeeded in crafting a unique, slow-building, claustrophobic work of art. It’s like a more ambiguous version of Martha Marcy May Marlene cloaked in a nebulous, science fiction inspired domain. This is a mesmerizing thriller set in a hazy and dreamy Los Angeles landscape, brimming with layers of effective shallow focus shots and anchored by a magnetic, overwhelmingly self-assured performance…

The World Is More Than Enough - 30 Countries In 30 Days Challenge (18 / 30) - USA

SOME SPOILERS

Having been entranced by Another Earth a few months ago, Sound Of My Voice was one of the most eagerly awaited films on my watchlist due to sharing the same writer-lead actress Brit Marling.

The problem is that while I knew right away that I really liked that film, I've come out of this one not really sure what to make of it. So this is going to be one of those reviews where I write about and work through what I liked and disliked about it, and hopefully come to some kind of a conclusion about it. Because right…

It’s hard to know what to make of Zal Batmanglij’s directorial debut, Sound of My Voice. It is enigmatic, moody and frequently fascinating yet there is the niggling suspicion that it is as empty as the prophetic words uttered by the film’s cult leader. Co-written and starring Brit Marling who came to prominence with the overrated sci-fi film, Another Earth, this too features the same hallmarks as her indie hit yet is by far the more successful film. The plot follows two investigative journalists as they infiltrate a cult led by a woman who claims she is from the year 2054.

It’s a compelling premise for a film and Batmanglij teases an interesting and puzzling story about control, manipulation, faith…

Part of Dastardly Difficult December: film nr.8

This is a rather interesting study into initiation into a cult and the subsequent slow manipulation of the subjects in it.

At the head of this particular cult is someone who claims to be from the future and the conflict in the story is generated by the two leads who are attempting to go undercover there and unmask this person as a fraud.

We are thrust in the middle of this story and via some clever editing and storytelling we quickly get to know all involved and what's at stake. There is a deliberate slowness to the development of the plot to emphasise the depth of the programming involved in this cult. There…

If you were living a lie, is it a better, more free life than the truth?

That's what I think this film is trying to ask in compelling detail. This film stars rising star Brit Marling as a cult leader who talks her followers into believing she's from the future. Two of her followers are journalists who go undercover to expose this woman as a fraud. But, is she really a fraud or has she really practiced what she preaches?

Brit Marling...my...she is an absolute gift to the acting world. She had my curiosity with Another Earth. Now she has my full attention. In that film, she was lost and struggling. Here she is free and all knowing and confident.…

So close to being my favorite film of the year so far. SO CLOSE. Instead, a shaky ending that's more ambiguous than it needs to be brings down the film from being truly great.

The film is at its best when Brit Marling is on screen. While I didn't like Another Earth, she's absolutely fantastic in this, and brings a great sense of presence to the film, and you feel as if she's as important as the character she's playing makes herself out to be. Her scenes can start off really calm and meditative, and then turn into something confrontational and tense. Yet, Marling makes it work. You always get the feeling that she's thought everything through, and it adds…

The World Is More Than Enough - 30 Countries In 30 Days Challenge (18 / 30) - USA

SOME SPOILERS

Having been entranced by Another Earth a few months ago, Sound Of My Voice was one of the most eagerly awaited films on my watchlist due to sharing the same writer-lead actress Brit Marling.

The problem is that while I knew right away that I really liked that film, I've come out of this one not really sure what to make of it. So this is going to be one of those reviews where I write about and work through what I liked and disliked about it, and hopefully come to some kind of a conclusion about it. Because right…

In the profoundly mystifying Sound of My Voice, eccentric and virtuoso indie actor/writer extraordinaire Brit Marling proves once again that she is a force to be reckoned with. Even though it’s not as ambitious and penetrating as that impressive piece of independent, no-budget filmmaking, 2011’s masterpiece (my personal favorite movie of that year) Another Earth, she and director Zal Batmanglij still succeeded in crafting a unique, slow-building, claustrophobic work of art. It’s like a more ambiguous version of Martha Marcy May Marlene cloaked in a nebulous, science fiction inspired domain. This is a mesmerizing thriller set in a hazy and dreamy Los Angeles landscape, brimming with layers of effective shallow focus shots and anchored by a magnetic, overwhelmingly self-assured performance…