Within the first ten minutes of Agnes, there is an opening scene where a young girl sings in a peaceful manner to a group of nuns; a couple minutes after that, there comes a scene of said nuns sitting together, with one abruptly shouting how the group are all whores and lustful – the table shaking and silverware floating in the air. If that happens to read to you like an abrupt shift in tone, that’s just the start.
Directed by Mickey Reece, written by Reece and John Selvidge, Agnes starts out like a typical demonic possession film. Father Donaghue (Ben Hall) is called upon to investigate a convent of nuns and confirm if there is any demonic activity among them. The victim in particular is that of the titular Agnes (Hayley McFarland), who is the woman from the beginning yelling at the other Sisters and has continued to lash out violently and spew blasphemous language. Accompanying Father Donaghue is Benjamin (Jake Horowitz), a priest in training. When the two arrive at the convent, they must do what they can to save Agnes, all while striving to avoid temptation and the evil that lurks among them.
One might say that’s a straightforward premise when it comes to these types of films. However, not only does Agnes struggle in terms of tone when it comes to this portion of its story, it also introduces a major tonal shift within its last 48 minutes. For a film that is roughly an hour and a half, this shift is super abrupt; while it does cling to one of the film’s thematic points, it does so much to erode any of the suspense or horror that had been building up.
At one point, I couldn’t help but wonder if Agnes was trying to be a dark comedy. Several actions and lines of dialogue are delivered in janky or uncomfortable manners, with upsetting and serious subject matter being handled in a cartoonish fashion. The film has several scenes that are baffling as a result, and it’s hard to determine the tone Reece and Selvidge were aiming for; when an effort is made to convey an action or line in a serious nature, it is met with a goofy reaction that undersells the severity of the matter.
For example, in a scene where Father Donaghue is attacked by a possessed Agnes, the latter channels the words of a young child and yells out that he touched their “wee wee.” When Father Donaghue, Benjamin, and some nuns are talking afterwards, Father Donaghue asks how she could know that, and everyone shrugs it off, with Benjamin mentioning that he thought everyone knew. If the moment is trying to sell us something that is meant to be shocking and convey a serious matter, it is poorly executed and vapid.
Tonal issues like these hurt the overall plot throughout Agnes. There’s somewhat of a looming thematic point regarding lust and temptation – but minus a couple brief scenes where there are images of people hooking up and horny nuns talking about people being attractive, there is no real effort to cover these topics. It’s a thematic point that is incredibly surface level. How the narrative decides to handle Agnes and her affliction is also quite the letdown, considering where the film ends up by its conclusion.
To talk about that ending, we must talk about Mary (Molly C. Quinn). The biggest theme within Agnes is crisis of faith; to the film’s credit, more time is allotted to the topic through several characters – but primarily that of Mary. When it comes to her though, her narrative path only goes so far, hinting towards the greater depths the film could have explored. Without giving too much away, those last 48 minutes take on a super intense tonal shift. Minus a couple scenes, Agnes ends up playing out as and concluding like a crisis of faith drama. It has the beats of that type of drama, with feel-good moments alongside trials and struggle – but ultimately ends on a baffling final scene where Mary and the audience are left only with questions.
To be fair, there is some interesting character work being done through Mary; early on, the film provides her some additional focus, which ends up making more sense when that greater shift comes. She is a character with a whole lot of potential, and given all she has gone through, there is an air of anticipation to see how events will play out for her. But in its exploration of those struggling with faith, Agnes doesn’t say much at all. A lot of attention is given to conversations surrounding purpose – yet in those – the film feels restrained in how much further those conversations could go. Some neat ideas to ponder, sure, but nothing that challenges the audience or pushes boundaries of thought.
For what it’s worth, the cast are really giving it their all here; it’s just that no amount of self-awareness or effort from anyone within the film can save it from its story. It’s sad to say in a way, but there is a strong story within Agnes – unfortunately, there’s little of substance here, and what is present is bogged down by messy writing and thematic and tonal direction.
Agnes is now available on all major VOD outlets.
