The Sacrament

source: The Sacrament

I have only watched Ti West's The House of the Devil which I liked. So, I went in expecting good stuff and was not disappointed. This is a movie with much more finesse and skill based on the Jonestown Massacre. West builds up tension very slowly and steadily and then lets it all explode. It requires a lot of suspension of disbelief as is typical of found footage movies but West makes it work. However, the movie would not have been as effective as it is without a stunning performance from Gene Jones. He is there on screen for barely twenty minutes or so but makes it seem much longer. AJ Bowen and Joe Swanberg do a fine job as the protagonists with Bowen being the intrepid one and Swanberg the voice of reason. Amy Seimetz shows genuine talent as the brainwashed sister. It's believable without being hammy. The last half hour of The Sacrament is a harrowing look at how evil humans can become. The starting intentions may have been noble but they morphed into something ugly. There are at least two gut-wrenching sequences etched into my mind. At it's best, the movie recalls the raw, brutal terror possessed by The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, my pick for the greatest horror movie ever. The movie even downplays the religious aspect of the cult. Overall, The Sacrament is a brilliant horror movie. The horror in this is not from supernatural monsters or ghosts but from the darkest recesses of humanity which is funnily enough much much scarier.

The film is among the found footage genre. It leads in with some decent photography, nice ambient soundtrack, and some pretty good acting. The suspense builds with a decent and slow momentum, but unfortunately doesn't lead to anything interesting or unique. The film had a really nice opportunity to go down a different path. It had all the qualities to do so and be good. Unfortunately it just decided to re hash an old story and try to deliver it as something new. I can give it five out of 10 for keeping me interested until the climax good photography and nice track, but the subsequent let down can't allow me to give it anything higher. If you are interested in something like this I would recommend a documentary on Jonestown. There are many good ones out there.

This is utterly disgusting that they would film any movie to profit about a mass murder. There are still people alive who actually lived through Jonestown. The ones who died all have families. Yes this isn't a major movie. No it most likely wont break box office records for ticket sales. But this should be given an x rating which it couldn't advertise anywheres. And the next director who decides the love of money is more of value than a human life will know to do a different story. This is an opinion not a spoiler. If it gets me blacklisted here i wont care. But this film is utterly evil and to all those involved in it shouldn't do film ever again.

Ti West's latest horror opus has the viewer following a man going to visit his sister at a remotely hidden commune with 2 internet documentarians in tow to film and follow the story. It turns out to be more of a cult though ruled by an enigmatic leader named Father who seems to have a tight hold over his flock. It doesn't take long before they realize things aren't exactly as they seem as they are drawn into the horror surrounding Eden Parish. Many comparisons to real life cult situations of the past are being drawn here in a lot of other reviews and comments which kind of give the ending of the movie away, maybe aptly so, but it really just plays out like a horror movie. A.J. Bowen plays a different kind of role than he's used to and does a great job of it. Fun cult movie has West moving in a new direction and he does a good job of it. There is quite a bit more action than his previous 2 films as the action moves along at a fairly steady pace. The soundtrack throughout the latter half of the movie detracts a little from the found footage experience as it takes a bit of the reality out of the situation.

The journalist Patrick (Kentucker Audley) works at the VICE, a company dedicated to cover bizarre news. When his sister Caroline (Amy Seimetz) joins a community, she travels abroad with her new family. Out of the blue, Caroline invites her brother to visit her in an undefined country and Patrick travels by helicopter with his friends Jake (Joe Swanberg) and Sam (AJ Bowen) that work with him at VICE. They find weird that the men that have come to guide them to the Eden Parish have guns. On the arrival to the camp, Patrick, Sam and Jake find a community of happy people that worship Father (Gene Jones). They interview Father but soon they realize that people are not as happy as they seem to be. Further, they find that they are trapped in the Parish Eden and they want to leave the place with the newcomers. But the Father does not have intention to let them go. "The Sacrament" is a suspenseful horror movie with a music score in the beginning that recalls "The Twilight Zone". However this awful "found- footage" genre spoils the creepy story. The Dogma 95 has only 77 recognized movies, but this rip-off of the genre seems to be the easiest means to produce cheap low-budget movies in the present days. My vote is five. Title (Brazil): "O Sacramento" ("The Sacrament")

Don't we all dream of the ideal world, one of love, peace, and harmony? In The Sacrament a crew of documentarians goes into the hidden world of "Eden Parish" searching for a lost sister. Eden Paris is a utopian paradise founded by a charismatic religious cult leader known as "father". His idea of this place came about as he traveled the world and found it filled with violence and hate and wanted to create the perfect place. Father loves his followers and works toward bringing the best that humanity has to offer. "Hello friend" is how he addresses the hesitant documentarians as they sit down for an interview. All seems perfect until the crew starts poking around below the surface. Then suddenly they become outsiders as the tables turn and they end up in a maze of confusion. A fascinating portrayal into the world of cults and religious orders that makes for a fast past story. From writer/director Ti West, this story is believable tale. The Sacrament makes for a mix of the perfect paradise that sparks off the perfect storm. I saw this film as part of the Atlanta Film festival

Wow...I can't believe this movie averages 6 stars. I went into it thinking something scary was going to happen. Halfway through, I realize the plot is pretty much Jim Jones and Jonestown. "Ok," I say to myself, "maybe there is a plot twist and they all turn into zombies or something clever." Nope. Basically whoever scripted this pile of crap plagiarized the Wikipedia page for Jamestown. , changed some names, added some Shakey-Cam, pretended like it was found footage, and added a terrible score. I was expecting a lot more. An actual documentary on The Jamestown Massacre is more terrifying than this movie. The saddest part of all is in the credits where, instead giving a tribute to the actual Jamestown Massacre victims, they continue with the fauxmentary falsehoods with the body counts and other BS about "Eden Parish." Save your time, avoid this movie.

The Sacrament is a fairly straightforward movie. It's about a group of guys who are part of a documentary film group and one of the guys' sister moves into an isolated commune and the film crew wants to know the full scoop. You'll know exactly where this movie is going as it progresses, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. It gives a chance for director Ti West to establish some character background and vague insights into the religious group while slowly turning the creep dial up until the movie's climax. The acting is good across the board, the standout being the Father (Gene Jones) who is suitably charismatic as the cult's ominous leader. For a found-footage movie it's shot well, but of course there are the typical issues that come with the turf - impossible angles, how the footage was even found - but these are things you'd know going in. The movie itself is a well executed, suspenseful slow burn. The biggest fault in The Sacrament is its predictability. Again, it's not a bad thing, we just know what's coming at every turn. Creepy cult, innocent people poking their noses in places they don't belong, an underlying dark scheme that slowly unravels to the protagonists. If that kind of stuff interests you and you're willing to forgive the tropes that come with the genre, The Sacrament is a worthwhile watch.

If The Sacrament has anything going for it, it would be how much the filmmakers accomplished with such a small budget. The colony is a worthy achievement; a lot of time and effort has been put into constructing the huts and various buildings. The isolation of the colony and the complacency of its inhabitants effectively establishes an eerie vibe and these are the main reasons why the first half of the film is the strongest. What tension there is builds slowly, and your time isn't wasted with jump scares and cheap thrills. Also, I appreciate, despite the fact that this is a found-footage film, that the camera isn't too shaky. As a whole, unfortunately, The Sacrament is ultimately ineffective as a horror/thriller film. Ti West and company have derived a lot of inspiration from the Jonesville mass suicide in 1978, and this ends up being a negative contribution to the film. I have watched harrowing TV documentaries regarding this truly horrifying moment in human history, but The Sacrament is simply as predictable as any routine horror film. I made the Jim Jones connection very early on. The appearance of Gene Jones as "Father" only confirmed this connection, though Jones is definitely a wonderful member of the cast and I applaud the filmmakers for tracking him down. I'm sure that there was a way to make this work. But the resemblances to Jonesville render the film practically unnecessary; I knew exactly what was going to happen. I understand that the film was based on a very disturbing event, but that doesn't give it a free pass. From a historic point of view, this is an interesting representation of Jim Jones' cult. But from a creative point of view, the film is ultimately an hour of slow -building tension with a restrained payoff. A good twist or perhaps taking the Jonesville concept in a unique direction would have given this a few more stars from me. In conclusion, I recommend this for people who have never heard of Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple. For everyone else, I can't say the same.