If you are planning to watch (streaming on MUBI and available on digital platforms as of press time), keep an eye on these recurring motifs:
From there, Lillian drifts through a series of wildly different American subcultures. She is taken in by a group of white nationalist filmmakers in rural Virginia, then abducted by a lovelorn antifa member, later finds herself as the muse of a reclusive, intellectual gay filmmaker in New York, and eventually becomes the focal point of a strange Islamic separatist community in Maine. The Sweet East
This choice of format is not merely aesthetic but thematic. The digital sheen of modern Hollywood often implies a sterile, controlled world. By shooting on film, Williams emphasizes the messiness of the subject matter. The grain mirrors the noise of the culture war. Furthermore, the cinematography often frames Lillian in wide shots, emphasizing her isolation. The camera observes with a cool distance, never getting too close to the characters emotionally, which heightens the satirical, almost anthropological tone of the film. We are watching a specimen under a microscope, and that specimen is America. If you are planning to watch (streaming on