Test Pattern (2021)
74%RT Audience Score: 50%
Awards & Nominations: 6 wins & 12 nominations
Test Pattern surveys the aftermath of a woman’s assault — and uncovers the many ways in which personal trauma can be compounded by systemic injustice
Test Pattern is a film that takes on a serious topic with a slim setup and runs with it. It’s a poignant and powerful examination of the intersections and inequalities between race, gender, and healthcare. But let’s be real, the real star of the show is the radiant performances and intense emotional eruptions that make it a must-see for those who love thrillers. Plus, it’s not a “message” movie, so you won’t feel like you’re being preached to. Overall, Test Pattern is a strong, sobering writing-directing debut that will leave you thinking long after the credits roll.
Production Company(ies)
Margate House Films,
Distributor
Kino Lorber
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
Year of Release
2021
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:NA
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Runtime:1h 22m
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Language(s):
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Feb 12, 2021 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 29, 2021
Genre(s)
Drama/Mystery & thriller
Keyword(s)
Test Pattern, drama, mystery, thriller, 1h 22m, Brittany S Hall, Will Brill, Gail Bean, Drew Fuller, Ben Levin, directed by Shatara Michelle Ford, written by Shatara Michelle Ford, produced by Shatara Michelle Ford, Pin-Chun Liu, Yu-Hao Su, Kino Lorber, flat aspect ratio, systemic injustice, personal trauma, interracial relationship, sexual assault, rape kit, prejudice, healthcare, gender, race, potent, provoking, engrossing, human drama, intense emotional eruptions, sobering, harsh commentary, callous indifference, must-see, top horror movies, MCU movies, Netflix series, TV premiere dates, worst horror movies, renewed and cancelled TV shows, 2022’s most anticipated movies and TV & streaming
Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA
US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Will Brill – Evan
Gail Bean – Amber
Drew Fuller – Mike
Ben Levin – Chris
Amani Starnes – Nurse Peg
Shatara Michelle Ford – Director/Writer/Producer
Pin-Chun Liu – Producer
Yu-Hao Su – Producer
Director(s)
Shatara Michelle Ford
Writer(s)
Shatara Michelle Ford
Producer(s)
Shatara Michelle Ford, Pin-Chun Liu, Yu-Hao Su
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
6 wins & 12 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (55) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (53) | Rotten (2)
This is a film that takes a slim setup, all of it predicated on difference, and runs with it, renders it into something as intellectually persuasive as it is dramatically refined.
February 25, 2021 | Rating: 4.5/5
K. Austin Collins
Rolling Stone
TOP CRITIC
Reveals, with fiercely focussed observation, the combined breakdown of public institutions and private life.
February 22, 2021
Richard Brody
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
This is an important film. It’s perhaps even more than timely — it’s urgent.
February 20, 2021
Claudia Puig
FilmWeek (KPCC – NPR Los Angeles)
TOP CRITIC
It doesn’t feel small. It packs a lot into that [short runtime].
February 20, 2021
Angie Han
FilmWeek (KPCC – NPR Los Angeles)
TOP CRITIC
Michelle Ford’s “Test Pattern,” with patient specificity, probes the institutional injustices suffered by black women to potent, provoking effect.
February 19, 2021 | Rating: B+
Robert Daniels
The Playlist
TOP CRITIC
An engrossing human drama, one that examines the intersections and inequalities between race, gender, and healthcare in a poignant and powerful way.
February 19, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/4
Monica Castillo
RogerEbert.com
TOP CRITIC
Those words by late civil-rights leader Malcolm X reverberate throughout filmmaker Shatara Michelle Ford’s white-knuckle debut…
January 4, 2022
Marlow Stern
The Daily Beast
It is not a “message” movie; instead it depicts the gulf between one man’s desire to help his traumatized girlfriend, and how she internalizes the realization…
December 29, 2021
Alan Zilberman
Washington City Paper
[Healthcare is] a willfully malicious system meant to dissuade, demoralize, and dehumanize women. And Ford pushes [things] even further [with society’s role too].
December 17, 2021 | Rating: 7/10
Jared Mobarak
Jaredmobarak.com
The radiant performances and intense emotional eruptions make it a must-see for those who love thrillers.
December 16, 2021 | Rating: 8/10
Ali Arkani
Film Threat
A strong, sobering writing-directing debut…
November 22, 2021 | Rating: 3/4
Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
It is a harsh commentary on a system where the trauma of rape is largely treated with callous indifference.
November 9, 2021
Cate Marquis
AWFJ Women on Film…
Plot
After Renesha is brutally assaulted, her boyfriend Evan must navigate systemic injustice and prejudice to help her get a rape kit in Test Pattern.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Nothing to add here about Test Pattern.
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