The Testament Of Ann Lee: Amanda Seyfried Is Sensational In This Socially Charged Religious Drama

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This new film shares the same creative team as last year’s critically acclaimed The Brutalist, and was co-written by Mona Fastvold and Brady Corbet. As a result, it’s beautifully shot and explores interesting ideas.

With beautiful, grainy visuals evoking 18th-century America, The Testament of Ann Lee initially creates a charming and peaceful atmosphere. However, the film quickly challenges this idealized image with a powerful and politically driven narrative. While the filmmakers seem hesitant to fully explore some of the story’s most interesting themes, the result is still a captivating film.

Ann Lee was a remarkable woman – the founder of the Shakers, but also a deeply complex individual. Actress Amanda Seyfried portrays her with both powerful understanding and incredible emotional depth. The film primarily focuses on Ann Lee’s experiences, diving into her perspective to explore broader ideas about faith, what it means to be a woman, and sexuality. While this focus is strong, it may sometimes overshadow other aspects of the story.

The Testament Of Ann Lee’s Story Has Deep Thematic Resonance

Mona Fastvold’s film is a powerful drama that goes beyond simply telling the life story of Ann Lee. While it follows her historical journey to America and her efforts to spread her beliefs, the film uses this story to explore broader ideas. It sparks a deeper conversation about the connections between faith, personal trauma, and how strongly those two things can be linked.

Fastvold’s film begins with a quote: The Testament of Ann Lee, or, The Woman Clothed with the Sun with the Moon Under Her Feet. This line comes from the Book of Revelation and suggests themes of religious prophecy, particularly the second coming of Christ. However, despite this opening, Ann Lee isn’t primarily a film about religion.

The film doesn’t debate if the Shakers are a true Christian group, or how reliable the accounts of Lee’s early religious life are. Instead, it focuses on how Lee’s intense religious beliefs develop from the difficult experiences and loss she faces as a child, which raises interesting questions about the connection between faith and hardship.

The Testament Of Ann Lee Features A Sensational Amanda Seyfried Performance

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Regardless of how much the spiritual themes in Ann Lee connect with viewers, Amanda Seyfried delivers the best performance of her career in this complex and challenging role. She powerfully portrays deep sadness and pain, and the musical aspects of the show require a very expressive and physically demanding performance from her.

From an observer’s point of view, what really sets Shaker worship apart is their distinctive “dance,” which they use to express and release sadness, believing it brings them closer to God. The performance of Ann Lee features a lot of physical movement – sometimes to the point of being repetitive or somber – but the musical numbers are so skillfully choreographed and flowing that they create a sense of freedom that seems to spread through the crowd.

During one of the film’s many powerful musical numbers, I started to envision Seyfried’s Oscar highlight reel. This happened repeatedly throughout the performance. She gives one of the year’s most compelling performances, and it would be a shame if she didn’t receive recognition for it.

The Testament Of Ann Lee Feels Thin & Underdeveloped At Times

Though Amanda Seyfried’s acting and Johannes Fastvold’s directing are nearly flawless, the script introduces some interesting concepts and then doesn’t explore them fully. This happens with things like a quick mention of Ann’s brother’s sexuality, or the Shakers’ anti-slavery beliefs – the film hints at these ideas but never really delves into them, leaving them underdeveloped.

You know, watching this film, it struck me that the director made a very deliberate choice to stay locked inside Ann’s head. We really experience everything through her perspective, which is interesting, but it also means the bigger picture – the politics of the religious group she’s involved with – feels a little blurry. While it’s a strong character study, I walked away wishing the film had a more defined takeaway. It’s beautifully focused on the how of her experience, but less sure about the why.

The film hints at how Ann’s past trauma and feelings of gender dysphoria influenced her decision to join the Shakers, but it doesn’t fully explore the significance of this connection. While the story is beautifully told and technically impressive, truly great films also make a clear case for why the story matters.

Note: This review was originally published on September 1st, 2025.

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2025-12-25 17:58