Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011)

Synopsis

A fleeing cult member struggles to re-adapt to life with her sister's family in this award-winning psychological drama from director T. Sean Durkin. Although she now lives a tranquil life at her sister Lucy (Sarah Poulsen)'s home in Connecticut, Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) is still haunted by the memories of her time spent under the spell of cult leader Patrick (John Hawkes) at his retreat in the Catskills.
See more A fleeing cult member struggles to re-adapt to life with her sister's family in this award-winning psychological drama from director T. Sean Durkin. Although she now lives a tranquil life at her sister Lucy (Sarah Poulsen)'s home in Connecticut, Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) is still haunted by the memories of her time spent under the spell of cult leader Patrick (John Hawkes) at his retreat in the Catskills. As the weeks go by and Lucy's family struggles to cope with her increasingly erratic mental state, Martha becomes filled with an increasing sense of foreboding and paranoia, as she fears that Patrick is about to return and exact his revenge.
See less

Our review

"The Olsen girl's got talent: her sensitive, understated central performance grounds this frighteningly believable insight into the cult mentality."

• Read all reviews