Earlier this week, Susie and myself had the wonderful opportunity to attend a 70mm screening and Q&A session of the film Testament of Ann Lee, direct by Mona Fastvold and staring Amanda Seyfried. Coming out in the UK on the 20th of February, this film reframes the 18th-century Shaker founder (Ann Lee) not as a relic of religious extremity, but as a woman of almost modern resolve. From the soot-choked mills of Manchester to the austere promise of the American frontier, the film traces Ann Lee’s transformation into a prophet preaching celibacy, confession, and communal equality as radical acts of defiance.

Technically categorised as a musical, the story is punctuated with sequences of worship mixing rhythmic dances, breath work, and traditional hymns. Directed by a woman and sharing the story of one of the first female preacher, this film uses intentional and powerful cinematic strategies redefine the forgotten and overlooked impact of female figures in the development of religious practices.

We highly recommend you go and enjoy this unique film after its release later this month!

Testament of Ann Lee does not unfold like a conventional period drama. It moves slowly, almost ceremonially, asking the viewer to sit with gesture, silence and belief rather than plot. Written, directed and produced by Mona Fastvold, the storyline focuses on Ann Lee not as a distance historical figure but as a body under pressure. A person negotiating grief, expectation and belief within a society that cannot contain her. The sparse interiors, candlelit scenes and long takes create a feeling closer to ritual than narrative cinema,  the sound and music deepen that atmosphere rather than instruct emotion.

As the centre is Amanda Seyfried’s performance, which is striking in its restraint. Much of her acting happens in stillness: held posture, fixed gaze and controlled movement communicate more than dialogue. She rarely explains what Ann Lee is feeling, instead allowing emotion to surface physically, making moments of suffering and conviction feel lived rather than dramatised. What struck me as brave was the film’s willingness to invite sequences that carry a contemporary charge; they subtly mirror present debates around immigration enforcement, transforming the viewing experience from historical observation into lived recognition, into something immediate and unsettling.

I can’t recommend this film enough. Bravo Mona Fastvold!