Marionette opens with a clearly upset man at the top of a tower in Scotland. While yelling at some unknown force, he pours gasoline over himself and lights it. We jump forward to find his replacement moving into his office and learn that he was a psychologist and Dr. Marianne Winter moved from the States to take this position.  She starts sessions with a young boy name Manny who believed himself to be in control of reality. As time ticks on, we learn that Marianne is running from past trauma while trying to find her place in this new country. Soon she questions the very meaning of free will and predetermined outcomes.

This is a case of some rather heady concepts on display while still trying to maintain a triller aspect. The two don’t really mesh all the well though. On one hand we’re watching someone work through their grief while still trying to help the children that they are working with. On the other hand, there are potentially supernatural happenings when it comes to Manny and how he may or may not be God.

Marionette always seems to be at odds with itself. There really isn’t much blending of genres. It’s always one or the other. Even with the tonal whiplash, the acting is strong. Dr. Marianne Winter (Thekla Reuten) does great as a woman who is already on edge due to so much happening. While the adults do well in their roles, I would be remiss if I didn’t shine a light on Manny (Elijah Wolf) as the boy at the center of all this. Child actors can be hit or miss most of the time, but Elijah falls into the hit category. He’s able to flip seamlessly between emotions and will keep you guessing as to what his true nature is.

From a technical standpoint, Marionette does well visually. With the grey landscape and muted colors, you get a sense of what Scotland could feel like. Flashbacks and scenes in the US are bright and sunny which adds to the mood and overall tone of the film. A lot of care and skill went into the cinematography, and it shows. The audio doesn’t see the same attention to detail or care. While it’s mostly okay, there are areas where dialog is muffled, or background sounds overtake the foreground. It’s not the worst I’ve heard but it does hurt the overall experience.

Marionette talks a lot about what could be reality and how choices or free will come into play, if at all. There’s no denying that there are some thought provoking subjects on display here and the story does well to keep you guessing. Strong acting and an incredible performance from Elijah Wolf help elevate the movie but the inconsistent sound and uneven pacing work against it. If you want an interesting film with some well-done cinematography and interesting themes, Marionette has you covered–if you don’t think too much about it when it’s all said and done.

7 out of 10