{"id":20288,"date":"2020-04-02T13:06:23","date_gmt":"2020-04-02T20:06:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=20288"},"modified":"2020-04-02T13:06:23","modified_gmt":"2020-04-02T20:06:23","slug":"the-other-lamb-is-impressively-mounted-but-emotionally-chilly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=20288","title":{"rendered":"THE OTHER LAMB is Impressively Mounted, but Emotionally Chilly"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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This feature from IFC Films debuts \u201con demand\u201d on various cable and digital platforms Friday, April 3rd.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the idea of cutting oneself off from the modern world\nmay seem appealing, doing so by way of a cult is a less than advisable life choice\u2026\nespecially if you happen to be a woman. So says the low-key chiller The\nOther Lamb<\/em>, which depicts an independent community on their own in the\nwilderness. The story is intriguing, examining a changing dynamic within the\ngroup after spending years off the grid and following orders from their leader.\nStill, the film takes a very mannered and minimalist approach. While\ninteresting, its cold and distant tone can leave viewers adrift from the\nproceedings.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The tale focuses on Selah (Raffey Cassidy), a teenage girl\nwho was born within the cult run by its only male member, Shepherd (Michael\nHuisman). The figurehead lords over his many wives and daughters, telling them\nstories and giving them instructions on how to live. With womanhood\napproaching, Selah is a prominent devotee of Shepherd, flattered by her\nguardian\u2019s attention and praise. He compliments her beauty and devotion to his\nteachings and the cause (whatever that might be). However, not every member is\npleased with their lifestyle. One of the estranged wives named Sarah (Denise\nGough) begins to converse with Selah and the youth eventually begins to\nquestion Shepherd and his gospel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This movie looks very impressive and succeeds at communicating\nan eerie sense of isolation. The scenic photography is striking and some\ninteresting visual devices are used. String is extended out around buildings\nand trees in areas of the camp. It helps create a physical manifestation of\nfollowers trapped in what could almost be considered the web of a spider. Early\non, it\u2019s impossible to determine when the film is set and this strange\ntimelessness creates a sense of unease. Of course, when the camp is forced to\nfind a new place to live and briefly cross paths with non-members, an effective\ncontrast between themselves and the outside world is created. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Performances are also strong, with Cassidy making an\nimpression as the teen who slowly begins to doubt her fearless leader. Most of\nthe cast are captured using long takes and close ups. It takes a great deal of\nskill to keep the attention of viewers while staring quietly at each other and contemplating\ntheir place in this world. And early on, one finds the predicament of the lead\ncharacter fascinating. After all, she knows very little about the outside world\nand can only believe what she has been told by an unreliable narrator who may\nbe planning an incestuous future with his favorite child. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the story takes almost no unexpected twists and\nturns and feels a little too simple for a feature. It\u2019s very clear that the\nmovie is critiquing power-hungry leaders and the patriarchy as the females\nwithin the family are abused and demeaned for disobeying the Shepherd. Yet as\npresented, it\u2019s often difficult to get a sense of what draws the group members\nto their leader. As written, he pays his wives and daughters a compliment or\ntwo, but has an icy quality, even before his actions turn openly violent. He\ndoesn\u2019t seem particularly charismatic or charming and it would have been\ninteresting to understand how a nasty figure could start a cult and invoke\nextreme devotion in others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Instead, Shepherd\u2019s motivations are obvious in that he wants\nnothing more to maintain authority commanding an all-female cult and producing\nmore offspring to serve him. As a result, one struggles with the motivations of\nthe cult members and their slow response as events worsen. Perhaps it\u2019s meant\nto display the mundanity of evil, but it takes an extremely long time for the daughters\nto understand the gravity of the situation and attempt to take action. Beyond\nit being well shot, there\u2019s nothing about the story itself that will surprise\nor shock. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the end, I admired this feature on a technical level, but\nalso found the chilly tone and approach emotionally distancing. As such, my\ninvestment in the story wasn\u2019t as strong as it could have been. The Other\nLamb<\/em> is a well-made and performed feature, but one that is difficult to\nfeel a deep attachment or devotion towards. \n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This feature from IFC Films debuts \u201con demand\u201d on various cable and digital platforms Friday, April 3rd. While the idea of cutting oneself off from the modern world may seem appealing, doing so by way of a cult is a less than advisable life choice\u2026 especially if you happen to be a woman. So says […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":20289,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[198,1841,1851,4983,5719,6251,9655,13789,16593,21788,21789,21790,21791],"class_list":["post-20288","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movie-reviews","tag-198","tag-art-house","tag-arthouse","tag-cult","tag-denise-gough","tag-drama","tag-ifc","tag-michael-huisman","tag-raffey-cassidy","tag-the-other-lamb","tag-the-other-lamb-film-review","tag-the-other-lamb-movie-review","tag-the-other-lamb-review"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20288","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20288"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20288\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20288"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20288"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20288"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}