Movie Review - The Testament of Ann Lee

Director: Mona Fastvold
Genre: Drama/ Musical
Runtime: 136 minutes
Year: 2026
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Lewis Pullman, Thomasin McKenzie, Tim Blake Nelson
 
Description: Ann Lee (Amanda Seyfried), the founding leader of the Shaker Movement, is proclaimed as the female Christ by her followers. This film depicts her establishment of an utopian society and the Shakers’ worship through song and dance, based on real events.
 
Review: With “The Testament of Ann Lee”, director Mona Fastvold delivers an extremely ambitious, feverish biopic that walks the line between historical drama and avant-garde musical. Although the film is visually stunning and pushes the boundaries of the genre, its emotional depth unfortunately leaves the viewer at a distance.

The film tells the true story of Ann Lee, an 18^th century woman from industrial Manchester. After the traumatic loss of her young children and a troubled marriage, she finds spiritual enlightenment within a radical religious movement. She emerges as the visionary leader of the Shakers, a cult that believes in absolute celibacy, pacifism, and radical gender equality. Her followers even regard her as the female incarnation of Christ. To escape severe persecution, Lee sets sail with her loyal followers to the American colonies to found a utopian community there. Their devotion and the absolution of sins are expressed not through traditional sermons, but in frenzied, ecstatic singing and group dances that border on a physical trance.

The absolute highlight is the way the Shaker hymns are brought to life. And Amanda Seyfried delivers a phenomenal, physically intense performance; her animated gaze and vocals effortlessly carry the film through even the most abstract scene.

Despite these mesmerizing elements, the film falls short dramatically. The film is repetitive, and has an episodic structure. And there is a psychological barrier, because as a viewer we observing Ann Lee, but they never truly dissect her. You admire the craftmanship on screen, but the characters leave you emotionally unmoved. The characters remain underdeveloped. And the 136 minute runtime is very palpable, it’s way too long. And in this time they could have done a lot more with the characters.

“The Testament of Ann Lee” is a daring and visually breathtaking experiment that uniquely turns the biopic formula inside out. However, those hoping for a gripping emotional drama or an in-depth character study may leave this utopian journey feeling somewhat unsatisfied.  As a highly emotional person myself, this movie did very little for me.   

Rating: 3/ 5

00s Movie Review - Mean Girls

Director: Mark Waters
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 97 minutes
Year: 2004
Starring: Lindsay Lohan, Rachle McAdams, Amanda Seyfried, Lacey Chabert, Tiny Fey, Tim Meadows, Amy Poehler, Lizzy Caplan, Johnatan Bennett

Description: Cady Heron (Lindsay Lohan) is a hit with The Plastics, the A-list girl clique at her new school until she makes the mistake of falling for Aaron (Jonathan Bennett), the ex-boyfriend of alpha Plastic Regina George (Rachel McAdams).

Review: “Mean Girls” is the ultimate high school survival guide that remains razor sharo more than twenty years later.

Casy Heron has lived in Africa with her parents and has always been home schooled. She has never experiences life at an actual high school, until they move back to America. Here she learns that there are several different cliques in high-school. The most important one: The Plastics, led by Regina George.
Tina Fey’s script transforms the teen genre into a clever satire full of iconic one-liners that have become part of our collective memory.

Lindsay Lohan is at her best as the naïve Cady, but Rachel McAdams steals the show as the terrifying Regina George. The film brilliantly (and painfully) exposes the social hierarchy and the ‘girls’ world without even losing its humor. It is colorful, witty and surprisingly relatable for anyone who has survived high school.

One of the better teen comedies of the 00s.

Rating: 4/ 5

20s Movie Review - The Housemaid

Director: Paul Feig
Genre: Thriller/ Drama
Runtime: 131 minutes
Year: 2025
Starring: Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, Michele Morrone, Indiana Elle

Description: Millie (Sydney Sweeney) is a struggling young woman who is relieved by the chance for a fresh start, when she gets a job as a housemaid for a wealthy couple (Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar). Soon, she discovers that the family’s secrets are far more dangerous than her own.

Review: “The Housemaid” is based on the beloved book with the same title, by author Freida McFadden. One of today’s most popular thriller writers. The film is an over-the-top psychological thriller, with many plot twists and strong performances.

Millie has hit rock bottom. She is on parole, living in her car and has no job, money or prospects. She applies for the job as a housemaid for the rich Winchester family, but doesn’t expect much from it. But she gets the job. Finally, she feels like she will get her life back in order. Millie will be moving in with the Winchesters, wife Nina, husband Andrew and young daughter Cece. While Millie has some secrets from her past, the secrets in this family are far darker.

I read the book about two years ago. I really loved it, the plot twist half-way though took me by surprise. I have made several people in my family and friend circle read it, they were all just as surprised. I was curious to see how they would do it in the movie.

The book is no masterpiece, but it kept my attention at all times and was a great thriller. The same goes for the film. “The Housemaid” is entertaining and full of twists. It’s a wild ride, mindless entertainment and a very strong psychological thriller.

When it comes to the performances, Amanda Seyfried really stands out as Nina Winchester. She has the most difficult role to play and really does a fantastic job.

The film explores themes such as class differences and offers a feminist message. It also offers a mix of sexual and psychological manipulation.

But this film is far from perfect. Sometimes it’s a bit too over-the-top, on the edge of becoming silly. The dark humor does not always work. And even though Sydney Sweeney is solid in her performance as Millie, there are some moments where I feel she wasn’t the right choice. Finally, the role of Enzo feels a bit pointless. His role is much bigger in the book. If they had left him out of the movie, it wouldn’t have had any effect on the plot whatsoever.

Do I think it’s a successful adaptation of the book? Yes. Director Paul Feig managed to transform the original story into a compelling film. Not flawless, but an entertaining psychological thriller.

Rating: 3,5/ 5 

10s Movie Review - While We're Young

Director: Noah Baumbach
Genre: Comedy/ Drama
Runtime: 97 minutes
Year: 2014
Starring: Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts, Adam Driver, Amanda Seyfried, Charles Grodin

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 23: A FILM WITH AMANDA SEYFRIED
 
Description: A middle-aged couple’s (Naomi Watts, Ben Stiller) career and marriage are overturned when a disarming young couple (Adam Driver, Amanda Seyfried) enters their lives.

Review: Growing older is not easy, especially in a society as youth-oriented as ours. Becoming an adult is even more difficult these days, and increasingly less the same as growing older. What does it mean to be an adult, if it is no longer strictly tied to age? How do you become an adult and stay young at the same time? These questions are the basis of “While We’re Young”, by director Noah Baumbach.

Josh and Cornelia are a couple in their forties who are torn between what is expected of them at their age and their longing for their younger selves. The lives of their best friends revolve solely around children and parenthood, but the couple is not (yet) interested in that. Josh is a documentary filmmaker who has been working on his second film for ten years, without success. In doing so, he is actually postponing further development in his life, always citing the completion of his film as a reason for not doing anything else.

Then they meet Jamie and Darby, two incredibly hip twenty-somethings. They come acress as so original and spontaneous to Josh that he tries to become young again through his interactions with them and drags Cornelia along with him. This results in some funny scenes, where for example Cornelia is learning to dance to hip-hop after fleeing her best friend’s baby music class.

Baumbach skillfully interweaves artistic doubts with uncertainty about growing older and/ or becoming an adult, and the question of how to deal with this (and how not to). Baumbach has his own unique style, I always love his tragicomedies. And I feel like this is a movie that is overlooked by many.

Rating: 4 / 5

Movie Review - Mank

Director: David Fincher
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 131 minutes
Year: 2020
Starring: Gary Oldman, Amanda Seyfried, Lily Collins, Charles Dance, Tuppence Middleton, Leven Rambin, Tom Burke, Tom Pelphrey, Arliss Howard, Toby Leonard Moore, Joseph Cross, Jamie McShane, Elvy, Sam Throughton, Natalie Denise Sperl, Ferdinand Kingsley, Adam Shapiro

Description: 1930s Hollywood is reeveluated through the eyes of scathing social critic and alcoholic screenwriter herman J, Mankiewicz (Gary Oldman) as he races to finish the screenplay of Citizen Kane.

Review: Screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz, Mank for short, is approached by Orson Welles to work on a film script. Through flashbacks his route to the making of this script will be explained.
I know director David Fincher mainly from his darker work, like “Se7en”, “Zodiac”, “Gone Girl” and his profound series “Mindhunter”. So when I saw his name connected to this film, I was intrigued. And yes, with Gary Oldman in the lead, it quickly got my attention. “Mank” is an ode to film from the late 30s, early 40s. With “Citizen Kane” as the legendary battleship of his catgory. This is a film that cinephiles with a penchant for old Hollywood will enjoy.
“Mank” was shot in that style: completely black and white, with methods of lighting and sound that make you feel like you’re in classic Hollywood. Fincher makes the choice here to e very stylistic, which I didn’t expect him to be. And he did this very well. Gary Oldman plays the charismatic Mank, intellectual chatterbox and professional drunk, and he does this sublime. Amanda Seyfried, who I have never been a big fan of, plays her best role so far. And Charles Dance is always great in whatever he does. But it’s Oldman’s movie and nobody will be able to drink enough to come across as credibly drunk as Oldman does here soberly. And at the same time eh finds the balance between pedanticism and sympathy.  
The script is well put together, but doesn’t have much to do. “Mank” is a bit too long to my taste. The many flashbacks add to how Mank wrote the script for “Citizen Kane”, because that’s what this is all about, and why he made certain script choices. The film certainly isn’t boring, but it won’t appeal to everyone. The cinephiles among us will love it. For the rest: this is a stylistic biographical film you may or may not like. It suits me just fine!

Rating: 3,5 / 5

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 156: Ted 2

Director: Seth MacFarlane

Genre: Comedy

Runtime: 115 minutes

Year: 2015

Starring: Seth MacFarlane, Mark Wahlberg, Amanda Seyfried, Jessica Barth, Patrick Warburton, John Slattery, Morgan Freeman, Sam Jones, Giovanni Ribisi, John Carroll Lynch, Liam Neeson

Description: Newlywed couple Ted (Seth MacFarlane) and Tami-Lynn (Jessica Barth) want to have a baby, but in order to qualify to be a parent, Ted will have to prove he's a person in a court of law.

Review: “Ted” was a great comedy and although I loved it I wasn’t excited about a sequel. Comedy sequels don’t have a great reputation. “Ted 2” is no exception.

“Ted 2” brings back Seth MacFarlane and his cursing, drug using teddy bear. This time ted has to proof in a court of law that he is a person and not an object. Together with his best friend John they work their way to a happy ending.

There is still a lot of chemistry between Mark Wahlberg and the animated bear and there are jokes. But it’s more of the same and it’s never as funny as the first film. Mila Kunis has been replaced by Amanda Seyfried, who I can appreciate for her self-mockery in “Ted 2”. The movie also has some awesome cameos.

“Ted 2” is still a fun comedy, but the movie is way too long and it offers us nothing new.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 92: Gone

Director: Heitor Dhalia

Genre: Thriller

Runtime: 94 minutes

Year: 2012

Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Daniel Sunjata, Jennifer Carpenter, West Bentley, Sebastian Stan, Nick Searcy, Socratis Otto, Emily Wickersham, Joel David Moore

Description: Jill Conway (Amanda Seyfried) is convinced her kidnapper has returned when her sister Molly (Emily Wickersham) goes missing.

Review: In “Gone” Jill is struggling to get a grip on her life, after she was kidnapped by a psychopath. He kept her in a hole in the forest, but she managed to escape. Because the abductor was never caught, the police doesn’t believe her. Jill is convinced the guy is still after her. When her sister goes missing, Jill knows it’s him. Because she will get no help from the cops, Jill is going after him on her own.

Amanda Seyfried broke through because of her role in the musical “Mamma Mia”. After that she never really got the chance to show the audience what she can do. In “Gone” she doesn’t get that room either. Although she isn’t bad, the story is just not executed that well.

“Gone” never manages to get me on the edge of my seat. The buildup isn’t all that great and the characters are all very one-dimensional. And the climax is disappointing. When the end credits role, you are wondering if this was really it. Because the characters don’t really reach you, the movie never grabs you.

“Gone” isn’t all bad, but it never surprises or ever gets really exciting. When you’re waiting for the twist, the movie is already over.

Rating: 2/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 86: A Million Ways to Die int the West

Director: Seth MacFarlane

Genre: Comedy

Runtime: 116 minutes

Year: 2014

Starring: Seth MacFarlane, Charlize Theron, Amanda Seyfried, Liam Neeson, Neil Patrick Harris, Giovanni Ribisi, Sarah Silverman

Description: As cowardly farmer Albert (Seth MacFarlane) begins to fall for the mysterious new woman Anna (Charlize Theron) in town, he must put his new-found courage to the test when her husband (Liam Neeson), a notorious gun-slinger, announces his arrival.

Review: The authentic letters and music of the opening credits tell us immediately that “A Million Ways to Die in the West” is a western. Director Seth MacFarlane obviously likes the genre and gives it his own twist. He mixes up western with the genre he knows best: comedy. It gives us some great jokes, but also some mediocre ones centered around farts, sex and poop.

The wild west of 1882 isn’t without danger, that’s what somewhat clumsy sheepherder Albert Stark knows. Decease, rivalry, Indians, all possible causes of death. When Albert is then also stood up by his girlfriend Louise, his life as a frontier is over. Until he meets Anna, a mysterious woman who makes Albert win back his courage and confidence. But what he doesn’t know is that Anna is married to the most vicious gunslinger of the west.

The plot isn’t that surprising and it kicks in a lot of open doors. But it’s more about the humor here. “A Million Ways to Die” succeeds, but not entirely. The jokes where they are mocking the genre are the best, which makes it a bit like a parody. This works. And MacFarlane also knows how to set the audience in the opposite direction, which makes it surprising at times. The actors are seemingly having a great time. But sometimes the jokes are a bit juvenile or badly timed.

Seth MacFarlane is still one of the funniest guys out there, but he still has a lot to learn as an actor and director. “A Million Ways in the West” wasn’t as hilarious as I hoped it would be, but it had some great jokes, an amazing cameo and I really enjoyed this western parody.

Rating: 3/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 19: The Big Wedding

Director: Justin Zackham
Genre: Comedy/ Romance
Runtime: 89 minutes
Year: 2013
Starring: Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton, Susan Sarandon, Katherine Heigl, Topher Grace, Amanda Seyfried, Robin Williams, Ben Barnes

Description: Don (Robert De Niro) and Ellie (Diane Keaton) were once married and have three children: Lyla (Katherine Heigl), Jared (Topher Grace) and adoptive son Alejandro (Ben Barnes). Eventually they divorce, Ellie moves away and Don hooks up with Bebe (Susan Sarandon), Ellie's best friend. When Alejandro is about to get married, he informs Don And Ellie that he never told his natural mother, who is so traditional,that they got divorced. And she is coming for the wedding so he asks them if they can pretend to still be married.

Review: You know that a first meeting starting with a lie never works out. That’s exactly what happens when Alejandro wants his divorced parents to pretend they are still together for his very religious biological mother.
It’s a cast with a lot of big names, but that doesn’t necessarily mean success. And “The Big Wedding” isn’t. Basically because of the chaotic script, which can’t seem to find a balance between sentimental clichés and corny jokes. It’s very predictable, some twists I could see from a mile away.
Acting veterans De Niro, Keaton, Williams and Sarandon never seem to carry this film to a higher level. Katherine Heigl seems like she was forced to do this movie, she has lost the charm she had when she was still on “Grey’s Anatomy”. And the storyline that Topher Grace has, is simply ridiculous. The wedding, which should be the highlight of the film, is also disappointing. Off course someone falls into the water and some punches are given. All you can do as a viewer is sigh of boredom.
“The Big Wedding” is an uninspired comedy that couldn’t be saved by the big actors. The movie feels forced and is very disappointing.

Rating: 1,5/ 5

In the Picture: The Characters from "Les Misérables"

Because I recently both saw the movie and read the book, I think it's about time to take a look at all the characters from the marvelous story.

Jean Valjean
Played by: Hugh Jackman
Jean Valjean is a Frenchman who was in prison for 19 years, for stealing a loaf of bread, and finally released. Years later he has made a name, but he has broke parole and is still hiding under a false name. Valjean takes care of Cosette, who he adopted and now raises as his own daughter.

Javert
Played by: Russell Crowe
Javert is a police inspector. His whole life is dedicated to finding Valjean and imprisoning him once again. Nothing holds him back.

Fantine
Played by: Anne Hathaway
Fantine is a struggling factory worker and the mother of an illegitimate child called Cosette. She is fired from the factory, owned by Valjean, and is forced to sell her own hair and her body for money in order to keep her daughter alive. After Fantine passes, Valjean takes Cosette under his wing.

Cosette
Played by: Amanda Seyfried
When her mother is still alive, Cosette lived with an innkeeper and his wife. They didn’t care for her and treated her badly. After Fantine died, Valjean takes Cosette with him and she lives a safe life with him. When she’s older, she meets Marius and falls in love with him.

Marius Pontmercy
Played by: Eddie Redmayne
Marius is a student revolutionary. He lives for his live as a revolutionary, but when he meets Cosette he changes his priority. Marius wants to find her, whatever it takes.

Éponine
Played by: Samanta Barks
Éponine is Marius friend and follows him in everthing. Marius doesn’t know that she is in love with him, but Éponine is heartbroken when she realizes Marius has already fallen in love with an other woman. Éponine is the daughter of the Thénadiers, the innkeepers that used to take care of Cosette.

Thénadier
Played by: Sacha Baron Cohen
Thénadier is an innkeeper and also a fraud. He steals from his customers and lies about everything just to get money. He sold Cosette to Valjean.

Madame Thénadier
Played by: Helena Bonham Carter
She is Thénadiers wife and just as contrived. Madame Thénadier can put up an act, she can manipulate you. She pretended to care for Cosette so Valjean would pay her more money.

Enjolras
Played by: Aaron Tveit
Enjolras is the leader of the revolutionaries, and Marius’ companion. He has one goal and hates the fact that Marius isn’t all in anymore after meeting Cosette.

Favorite Character: Éponine