Director: Zal Batmangili
Starring: Brit Marling, Ellen Page, Alexander Skarsgard, Patricia Clarkson, Aldis Hodge, Shiloh Fernandez, Jason Ritter
An operative for an elite private intelligence firm finds her priorities changing dramatically after she is tasked with infiltrating an anarchist group known for executing covert attacks upon major corporations.
Initial Reaction:
With "Sound of My Voice" being one of my favorite films of 2012, "The East" had been highly anticipated as this film had been from the same team. While I did enjoy "The East" while comparing it to the previous effort of Brit Marling and Director Zal Batmanglij, its sad to say the film while still an enjoyable experience it didn't leave me with the same feeling of "Sound of My Voice."
With "Sound of My Voice" being one of my favorite films of 2012, "The East" had been highly anticipated as this film had been from the same team. While I did enjoy "The East" while comparing it to the previous effort of Brit Marling and Director Zal Batmanglij, its sad to say the film while still an enjoyable experience it didn't leave me with the same feeling of "Sound of My Voice."
Plot: (3.5/5)
The Set-Up of the plot is a simple set up where a private operative (Brit Marling) is sent undercover into the anarchist group "The East" to locate and find the identities of all their members. With dealing with an anarchist cult like "The East" with the most of the focus going onto this group you need to be able to plant them as relatable and root able characters in their own right in the film, and I feel that is where the director succeeds the most. As an audience member the more the plot unfolds the more you see the reasoning behind their actions and what in life brings them to that place. Sometimes the plot takes clichéd turns that you would expect the plot to go and certain parts of the film that should have been focused on more does it go as in depth as they should. The big thing that the film doesn't give enough room to breathe is Brit Marling's character and her relationship with the East. It feels rushed and underdeveloped when looking back on the film as a whole. There are also stuff with her offices that she is working for that could have used more explaining as they are in about three scenes all together. Looking back on "Sound of My Voice" my main complaint with that film was the open-ended ending which doesn't work for independent films that will probably never see a sequel. I liked that while this film does leave it sort of open ended it did it in a better way that doesn't leave you underdeveloped and if a sequel is never made, it won't devalue this film any more.
The Set-Up of the plot is a simple set up where a private operative (Brit Marling) is sent undercover into the anarchist group "The East" to locate and find the identities of all their members. With dealing with an anarchist cult like "The East" with the most of the focus going onto this group you need to be able to plant them as relatable and root able characters in their own right in the film, and I feel that is where the director succeeds the most. As an audience member the more the plot unfolds the more you see the reasoning behind their actions and what in life brings them to that place. Sometimes the plot takes clichéd turns that you would expect the plot to go and certain parts of the film that should have been focused on more does it go as in depth as they should. The big thing that the film doesn't give enough room to breathe is Brit Marling's character and her relationship with the East. It feels rushed and underdeveloped when looking back on the film as a whole. There are also stuff with her offices that she is working for that could have used more explaining as they are in about three scenes all together. Looking back on "Sound of My Voice" my main complaint with that film was the open-ended ending which doesn't work for independent films that will probably never see a sequel. I liked that while this film does leave it sort of open ended it did it in a better way that doesn't leave you underdeveloped and if a sequel is never made, it won't devalue this film any more.
Directing: (4/5)
After successfully being able to shoot "Sound of My Voice'" on such a low budget, I was really intrigued to see director, Zal Batmanglij move into a more mainstream feel and for the most part he succeeds. If you have seen "Sound of My Voice" you do see shots that he brought straight from that film and into "The East" such as Brit Marling's look walk across a bridge or when a certain character throws something up and it sort of came into my main concern about Zal directing this film. After directing a critically successful film it's best for director's some time to sort of distance themselves from their previous film and "The East" felt very much in the same league of "Sound of My Voice." Zal does a great job with the film and he does a good job with the pacing who people such as the people who saw it with me thought it was a little slow it worked for me as made things feel more personal in the story. The writing of the film was also very good as in a film about anarchist against corporate figures it can become easy to strain to one-sided (Conservative or Liberal) in your film, I felt Marling and Batman (Who were the writers) stroke a good balance not painting either one side as to evil or too good.
After successfully being able to shoot "Sound of My Voice'" on such a low budget, I was really intrigued to see director, Zal Batmanglij move into a more mainstream feel and for the most part he succeeds. If you have seen "Sound of My Voice" you do see shots that he brought straight from that film and into "The East" such as Brit Marling's look walk across a bridge or when a certain character throws something up and it sort of came into my main concern about Zal directing this film. After directing a critically successful film it's best for director's some time to sort of distance themselves from their previous film and "The East" felt very much in the same league of "Sound of My Voice." Zal does a great job with the film and he does a good job with the pacing who people such as the people who saw it with me thought it was a little slow it worked for me as made things feel more personal in the story. The writing of the film was also very good as in a film about anarchist against corporate figures it can become easy to strain to one-sided (Conservative or Liberal) in your film, I felt Marling and Batman (Who were the writers) stroke a good balance not painting either one side as to evil or too good.
Acting: (4.5/5)
The acting was probably the best thing about this film. The film featured a really good cast front lined by Brit Marling (Sound of My Voice, Arbitrage) and Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood) who were really the stand outs of the film. Marling is really coming into her own as an actress as she continues to choose challenging roles and doesn't fall into generic female starring roles. As I felt certain parts of her character were underdeveloped, Marling really does play her character with a good sense of curiosity and vulnerability that makes her journey one worth sitting through. Skarsgard, who I am not to familiar with outside of True Blood did a good job as well playing a very menacing and manipulative leader of this anarchist group. The more this character unfolds throughout the plot, Skarsgard performance becomes that more powerful in the film. Ellen Page (Juno) plays a more smaller role in the film as a member of the anarchist group but the time she does have on screen was really good and one of her best performances in a long time. A scene she shares with her dad in the film was one of my favorite and one of the most impactful scenes in the entire film. Jason Ritter and Patricia Clarkson have smaller roles in the film but them along the rest of the characters in the film did a good job. Members of the cult could have been thought of as hamming it up a little bit but there role was so small that it wasn't that bad.
The acting was probably the best thing about this film. The film featured a really good cast front lined by Brit Marling (Sound of My Voice, Arbitrage) and Alexander Skarsgard (True Blood) who were really the stand outs of the film. Marling is really coming into her own as an actress as she continues to choose challenging roles and doesn't fall into generic female starring roles. As I felt certain parts of her character were underdeveloped, Marling really does play her character with a good sense of curiosity and vulnerability that makes her journey one worth sitting through. Skarsgard, who I am not to familiar with outside of True Blood did a good job as well playing a very menacing and manipulative leader of this anarchist group. The more this character unfolds throughout the plot, Skarsgard performance becomes that more powerful in the film. Ellen Page (Juno) plays a more smaller role in the film as a member of the anarchist group but the time she does have on screen was really good and one of her best performances in a long time. A scene she shares with her dad in the film was one of my favorite and one of the most impactful scenes in the entire film. Jason Ritter and Patricia Clarkson have smaller roles in the film but them along the rest of the characters in the film did a good job. Members of the cult could have been thought of as hamming it up a little bit but there role was so small that it wasn't that bad.
Replay Ability: (3/5)
Right off the bat, "The East" is not for everyone. I saw this film alongside my family and we ended up being split 50/50 on enjoying or hating it. "The East" is an independent movie at heart. It moves a little bit slower with not a lot of action but, if you can take that into consideration and stick with the film I can guarantee you'll end up feeling something once the credits roll. People with strong political stances probably want enjoy this as someone more independent in their political beliefs as both sides are painted in the film as corrupt and evil in their own ways. I for one enjoyed "The East" and the message it wanted to convey although sometimes everything they wanted to achieve didn't work.
Right off the bat, "The East" is not for everyone. I saw this film alongside my family and we ended up being split 50/50 on enjoying or hating it. "The East" is an independent movie at heart. It moves a little bit slower with not a lot of action but, if you can take that into consideration and stick with the film I can guarantee you'll end up feeling something once the credits roll. People with strong political stances probably want enjoy this as someone more independent in their political beliefs as both sides are painted in the film as corrupt and evil in their own ways. I for one enjoyed "The East" and the message it wanted to convey although sometimes everything they wanted to achieve didn't work.
FINAL GRADE: 3.75 (B+)
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