Martha Marcy May Marlene

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Martha Marcy May Marlene

R

2011

1h 41m

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

90%

Tomatometer

211 Reviews

71%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

After several years of living with a cult, Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) finally escapes and calls her estranged sister, Lucy (Sarah Paulson), for help. Martha finds herself at the quiet Connecticut home Lucy shares with her new husband, Ted (Hugh Dancy), but the memories of what she experienced in the cult make peace hard to find. As flashbacks continue to torment her, Martha fails to shake a terrible sense of dread, especially in regard to the cult's manipulative leader (John Hawkes).

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Critics Consensus

Led by a mesmerizing debut performance from Elizabeth Olsen, Martha Marcy May Marlene is a distinctive, haunting psychological drama.

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Christy Lemire

Associated Press

Mar 18, 2014

In quiet, intimate ways, it is one of the most startling, haunting films you'll see all year.

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Peter Rainer

Christian Science Monitor

Mar 18, 2014

B

Durkin intersperses the present-day scenes with increasingly revelatory flashbacks from Martha's two years in the cult.

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Violet Lucca

Film Comment Magazine

Jun 28, 2013

With a diegesis mapped along the mental contours of its protagonist, Martha Marcy May Marlene harkens back to Pasolini's notion of the cinema of poetry--and achieves it beautifully.

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Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

Jun 10, 2024

6/10

A psychological drama that builds its labyrinth with a fairly organic performance by Elizabeth Olsen, but its narrative often remains in an overly calculated zone that, in its register of circularity, never takes risks. [Full review in Spanish]

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Joe Lipsett

Anatomy of a Scream Podcast Network

Jan 11, 2024

4.5/5

Elizabeth Olsen stuns in her feature debut in a film that perfectly embodies PTSD. While the murder sequence doesn't fully work, the way Durkin shifts between timelines and the "before they were famous" cast makes this a must-see

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Nov 30, 2020

6/10

The acting is exceptional all around, as is the minimalist score.

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Leonardo M

@leosblinds Sep 19, 2026

bad acting, stupid and generic plot. 0 charisma. BAD MOVIE.

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Juris O

@Juris100 Sep 14, 2026

Another piece of crap about a weak person who ruins everyone's life.

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Jeremy S

@RT61123228 May 9, 2026

Truly awful. I watched it as Mark Kermode praised it. That's him off the christmas card list.

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Tim B.

@SlimTim0707 May 3, 2026

In her debut lead role, Elizabeth Olsen shows dimensions both figuratively and literally, displaying her labooboos and more, making for an awkward watch if you grew up watching Full House like me. In all seriousness, Martha Marcy May Marlene is one of those movies that constantly transitions to flashbacks. Movies like this can be irritating because it isn't always clear which continuity is currently on the screen, especially early on. That being said, the film is still good enough to hold your attention through its runtime.

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Henry D

@Henry_Domke Mar 4, 2026

Elizabeth Olsen gives a strong performance as a troubled young woman who takes a wrong turn and becomes entangled in a cult-like commune. Lorna said the abrupt ending was especially creepy and left her feeling genuinely unsettled.

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Kalissa H.

@kali_416 Feb 1, 2026

It went by really fast.

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Sean Durkin

Director

Elizabeth Olsen

Martha

Sarah Paulson

Lucy

John Hawkes

Patrick

Hugh Dancy

Ted

Brady Corbet

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Synopsis

After several years of living with a cult, Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) finally escapes and calls her estranged sister, Lucy (Sarah Paulson), for help. Martha finds herself at the quiet Connecticut home Lucy shares with her new husband, Ted (Hugh Dancy), but the memories of what she experienced in the cult make peace hard to find. As flashbacks continue to torment her, Martha fails to shake a terrible sense of dread, especially in regard to the cult's manipulative leader (John Hawkes).

Director: Sean Durkin
Producer: Josh Mond, Antonio Campos, Chris Maybach, Patrick Cunningham
Screenwriter: Sean Durkin
Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Production Co: Fox Searchlight
Rating: R (Disturbing Violent Content|Disturbing Sexual Content|Language|Nudity)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 21, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $3.0M
Runtime: 1h 41m

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