Sound of My Voice is a slightly
malfunctioning jack-in-the-box. Instead of having the tension crank up over
time and then release in a satisfying conclusion, it ratchets up the tension
but then fizzles away, leaving a little too much of its plot dangling on a
thread. Nevertheless, this is a taut and well-crafted 85 minute drama/thriller
with some excellent performances and a fascinating premise, and it is well
worth your time.
This the second feature from the
creative team of ‘Brit Marling and her friends’, this time with Zal Batmanglij
in the director’s chair. The first was ‘Another Earth’, which made a bit more
of a storm at Sundance in 2011 than this effort, although I do not think it is
necessarily the superior film. Both have big ideas and both end ambiguously,
but ‘Sound of my Voice’ is a tenser, more tightly constructed film which
benefits from its slightly lower ambitions.
Lorna and Peter are investigative
journalists who join a cult in order to create a documentary film and expose
the cult’s leader, Maggie, as a fraud. However, as the film progresses they
become more and more spellbound by Maggie, who claims to be from the future. She
has little evidence to support her claims, but her soft, husky voice, prom
queen looks and an air of mystery all combine to make her a compelling siren
capable of snaring even the sceptical journalists and, by the end, perhaps the
audience as well.
Maggie, played by Brit Marling, is a wonderfully fascinating
jigsaw of a character, who we learn enough about to begin piecing together her
journey in our minds, but not enough about to be able to definitely say who she
is or where she came from. While both Rhoda (in ‘Another Earth’, also played by
Marling) and Maggie are similar in that they are lost souls, Maggie is the far
more interesting character. Like any great leader, she has a powerful presence
and the uncanny ability to override our intelligence and logical thinking with
pure emotion. Crucially, Peter and Lorna’s constant battle between their
sceptical, logical thinking and the magnetic and alluring Maggie is totally
believable and is a battle being played out as much in our minds as theirs.
The vagueness and ambiguity of
Maggie’s character unfortunately also extends into the plot, with several plot
points left dangling. The audience discovers, at one point, that Lorna is an
excellent shot, but she never gets to utilise her ability, in clear (and
literal) breach of Chekhov’s famous principle that every element in a narrative
serve a purpose. These abandoned plot threads may have been left open for a
sequel, which is almost unforgiveable even for a major blockbuster, let alone
for an indie movie with absolutely no guarantee of being successful. The other
explanation may be the film’s low budget, which also benefits the film and
helps to create its claustrophobic and documentary-style atmosphere.
Summary: Sound of My Voice is a
clever little thriller which, with a little more fine tuning, could have been
great. It leaves a little too much dangling to be entirely satisfying, but its ideas linger in the mind.
Bechdel Test: Passed
