7.5/10
Freeganism is a moneyless lifestyle. Freegans ‘re-claim’ discarded food, hop
frieght trains, live communally, and share their gains. To dispel some myths, not all freegans are
anarchists, not all anarchists are freegans, and not all freegans are
vegan. The freegan collective in The
East are not by definition anarchists; their target is not the
government or ‘the system’. They are
going after multinational pharmaceutical and fossil fuel companies that seem to
operate above and outside the government system.
Sarah (Brit Marling) attempts to infiltrate the group, which
is no easy task. The East are a tight
unit, have known each other a long time, have each other’s trust, and are
extremely cautious around outsiders.
They published their manifesto on the Internet warning the CEOs and
other executives responsible for oil spills, poisoned water sources, and
dangerous drugs that their sins will be returned to them in kind. If you can do it to the masses, The East will
ensure the 1% get theirs as well.
Working for a high-end intelligence firm for no-nonsense and
ice-cold boss Sharon (Patricia Clarkson), Sarah starts trekking around outsider
groups seeking any connection to The East.
Sarah is an ex-FBI agent and must be one of the youngest ex-agents in
the history of the agency because she has a sack full of skills to choose from
but still looks like she is in her late-20s.
She picks locks with ease, appears fluent in American Sign Language out
of nowhere, and the National Clandestine Service would fall all over themselves
to recruit her for her superior human intelligence skills.
In way too many convenient ways, Sarah hooks up with The
East and begins to earn their trust. Led
by Benji (Alexander Skarsgard), the group squats in an old, burned-out
Victorian home where they plan their next moves against the all too powerful
conglomerates. Also part of The East is
Izzy (Ellen Page), a truly devoted acolyte to the cause, and Doc (Toby
Kebbell). Doc is naturally the group’s
medicine man in times of need and also has an overt, personal grudge against a
particular pharmaceutical entity who peddle drugs with nary a worry for their
known side effects.
If you spend enough time with a group, almost any group, you
will sympathize with their cause and want their goals to succeed. Sympathizing with caring folk earnestly
trying to save the environment must be one of the easiest groups to fall victim
to Stockholm Syndrome. Sarah finds
herself falling step by step to becoming a full-fledged and converted member of
The East, more than just acting the act for her intelligence gig.
Making the bad guys evil corporations who knowingly give
poor people cancer was a good move by writers Marling and Zal Batmanglij, who
also directed the film. Corporations
engaging in corrupt malfeasance make newspaper headlines everyday and are no
stretch to resonate with an audience and get them to root for The East even
though their methods are vigilante and illegal.
Going after the financial system would be too confusing and going after
government entities would be too polarizing.
Marling, pulling double duty as lead actress and
co-screenwriter, once again shows herself to be an engaging screen-presence. She is straightforward, confident, and
vulnerable all in the same scene.
Marling is so good because she is low key. The East is technically a thriller
but she is smart enough to throttle back and let the plot do the work; she
knows better than to act over-anguished and upset; she is probably the most
passive action/thriller heroine ever.
She was also phenomenal in 2011’s Another Earth, which she
also co-wrote, and was one of that year’s best films in my opinion. The East is not as profound as Another
Earth and has a ridiculous ending, but it is still very effective at getting
the audience to think. Marling has a
very rare double gift for acting and writing and after producing another winner
here, I consider her established and ready to knock our socks off next
time. She has all the potential in the
world to accomplish that.
Directed by: Zal Batmanglij
Written by: Brit Marling, Zal Batmanglij
Starring: Brit Marling, Alexander Skarsgard, Ellen Page, Tony Kebbell, Shiloh Fernandez, Aldis Hodge, Danielle Macdonald, Hillary Baack, Patricia Clarkson, Jason Ritter, Julia Ormond
No comments:
Post a Comment