Thomasin McKenzie, Mona Fastvold, Amanda Seyfried, Lewis Pullman, Viola Prettejohn and Jamie Bogyo attend 'The Testament Of Ann Lee' photocall during the 82nd Venice Film Festival on Sept. 1, 2025. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images) Share on Facebook Share on X Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Print the Article Post a Comment The Venice Film Festival hosted a world premiere on Monday afternoon for Mona Fastvold's The Testament of Ann Lee, delivering something close to a religious experience. The audience responded to the film, which stars Amanda Seyfried as founder of the radical religious sect the Shakers, with raptrous applause, and a 15-minute standing ovation. Seyfried wipes back tears as the house light rose and joined director Fastvold in the film's signature arm-pumping shaker dance as the ovation rained down.
Fastvold's partner, and co-screenwriter Brady Corbet worked the crowd and kept the ovation at a fever pitch. Fastvold looked to be in tears as well, turning around to hug her daughter with Corbet who beamed with pride. Related Stories Movies 'The Smashing Machine' Review: Dwayne Johnson Delivers the Blows as a Tormented Fighter in Benny Safdie's Gritty and Downbeat MMA Flick Movies 'Kim Novak's Vertigo' Review: Doc Tribute to an Icon of Hollywood's Golden Age Crosses the Line From Loving to Fawning The Shakers were a cult-like group, which formed as an offshoot of Quakerism in Manchester, England in 1747. They got their name from worship practices that included trembling, dancing and speaking in tongues. Founder Lee espoused gender and social equality while believing herself to be the female incarnation of Christ. Its members practiced strict celibacy. The Shakers ended up fleeing to America to escape persecution, ultimately settling near Albany, New York to build their utopia. The Testament of Ann Lee, which Fastvold directed from a script she co-wrote with her The Brutalist partner Corbet, also stars Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, Stacy Martin, Tim Blake Nelson, Christopher Abbott, Matthew Beard, Scott Handy, Jamie Bogyo, Viola Prettejohn and David Cale with music by Oscar winner Daniel Blumberg, also from Corbet's monumental work The Brutalist. Described as "speculative retelling," the film features than a dozen original Shaker hymns transformed into ecstatic "movements" with choreography from Celia Rowlson-Hall, who worked with Corbet on Vox Lux. In her festival director's statement, Fastvold confirmed that while she was raised in a secular household, Lee's prophecies, "however implausible," moved her deeply. "Not because I share her faith, but because I recognize in her a yearning for justice, transcendence, and communal grace. Her radical pursuit of a self-fashioned utopia speaks to the creative impulse at the heart of all artistic endeavor: the urgent need to shape the world anew." She said her film is offered as a tribute to Lee's dream "and the silence that now surrounds it." The Testament of Ann Lee has its world premiere on Monday afternoon inside Sala Grande. The Venice Film Festival runs Aug. 27-Sept. 6. THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day Subscribe Sign Up Venice Film Festival 2025 'The Smashing Machine' Review: Dwayne Johnson Delivers the Blows as a Tormented Fighter in Benny Safdie's Gritty and Downbeat MMA Flick Venice Film Festival 2025 'Kim Novak's Vertigo' Review: Doc Tribute to an Icon of Hollywood's Golden Age Crosses the Line From Loving to Fawning Zach Cregger Box Office: 'Weapons' Wins Quiet Labor Day With $12.8M, 'Jaws' Beats 'Caught Stealing,' 'The Roses' Venice Film Festival 2025 'The Testament of Ann Lee' Review: Amanda Seyfried Channels Agony and Ecstasy in Audacious Epic That's Easier to Admire Than to Love Venice Film Festival 2025 Dwayne Johnson Gets Choked Up Discussing 'The Smashing Machine' in Venice: "This Transformation Was Something I Was Really Hungry to Do" Venice Film Festival 2025 Amanda Seyfried on Going Feral to Play Shakers Founder Ann Lee: "I've Never Been Let Loose" Venice Film Festival 2025 'The Smashing Machine' Review: Dwayne Johnson Delivers the Blows as a Tormented Fighter in Benny Safdie's Gritty and Downbeat MMA Flick Venice Film Festival 2025 'Kim Novak's Vertigo' Review: Doc Tribute to an Icon of Hollywood's Golden Age Crosses the Line From Loving to Fawning Zach Cregger Box Office: 'Weapons' Wins Quiet Labor Day With $12.8M, 'Jaws' Beats 'Caught Stealing,' 'The Roses' Venice Film Festival 2025 'The Testament of Ann Lee' Review: Amanda Seyfried Channels Agony and Ecstasy in Audacious Epic That's Easier to Admire Than to Love Venice Film Festival 2025 Dwayne Johnson Gets Choked Up Discussing 'The Smashing Machine' in Venice: "This Transformation Was Something I Was Really Hungry to Do" Venice Film Festival 2025 Amanda Seyfried on Going Feral to Play Shakers Founder Ann Lee: "I've Never