Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011)

Martha escapes what seems to be a misogynistic commune and goes to stay with her sister and brother-in-law at their vacation home.  We are kept in the dark for most of the movie, only getting intermittent flashbacks to explain Martha’s difficult behavior.

This was not an easy movie to watch. Yes, the subject matter was difficult, but what made it hard to watch was the way the information was presented, not the content itself.  Sometimes we were so far up into the subjects’ faces that orientation was difficult, or much of what was onscreen was out of focus, or the dialogue was deliberately difficult to hear (at one point we were listening through a sliding glass door). These little flourishes were distracting and annoying.

As for Martha herself, her behavior was downright unbelievable.  I had a difficult time believing that social norms could be so thoroughly stripped away in a matter of a couple of years -- I mean, seriously?  She can’t remember that being naked in public places isn’t appropriate or crawling into bed with your sister while she’s having sex with her husband might be considered weird?

There’s an interesting idea here, but it's done in by indie “sensibilities.”

C+