Horrorfest 2014: The Sacrament

And now the final film of Horrorfest 2014, another Ti West joint, 2014's THE SACRAMENT. In short, THE SACRAMENT is a fictionalized retelling of the Jonestown massacre. Most of the details are there, although they're a little compressed and simplified, as well as updated so it can take place in contemporary times.

Joe Swanberg and AJ Bowen star as a cameraman and reporter for an online news site who become facsinated with their photographer friend's (Kentucker Audley) tale of the cult his sister (Amy Seimetz) has joined. They decide this is perfect material for their news site and accept an invitation to come visit the sister at the cult's remote, isolated compound in South America.

When they first arrive, things are definitely weird: there are guards with machine guns and the only way in and out of the compound is by a helicopter ride from the airport followed by a 2 mile drive into the wilderness. But, upon interviewing the members of the commune, it starts to look like they might all just be happy living off the land, away from the evils of modern society, as one big happy, hippie family.

Still, our heroes aren't convinced, and they're even less convinced when they interview the leader of the commune, known only as Father (Gene Jones), who speaks to his flock via loudspeaker throughout the day (and night) and is strangely defensive whenever he's questioned about seemingly simple concepts, like whether or not it's cool to have taken all of his commune members' life savings and property in order to help build this commune.

Of course any audience member in the real world knows it's only a matter of time before the whole group drinks the Kool Aid and dies. And, that's exactly what happens.

So, on one hand you have an inherently interesting story. The whole Jonestown thing is endlessly fascinating and it's a story that couldn't have been made more apt for a horror movie (or serious drama) by a screenwriter. It's one of those things where the truth is stranger than fiction.

On the other, it's a well known story and suffers a little from that. You know where everything is going from the beginning of the film, so there's little in the way of surprises, and it becomes a waiting game for the inevitable.

That said, it's a beautifully shot and well acted waiting game with a highlight performance from Gene Jones as the menacing Father. Jones is an actor you might recognize from any number of character parts in a million movies, so it's nice to see him shine here with a big, meaty role.

Having now seen all 3 of Ti West's feature length flicks throughout the course of 2 Horrorfests, I can say he's got the goods to make something really memorable. He's obviously good with actors, he's a master of tone and pacing, and, as mentioned before, his movies look like a million bucks even though they're low budget. The only thing lacking is the perfect story -- West does a lot with a little, that's for sure, but it'd be interesting to see what he could do with a really thoroughly fleshed out screenplay with a real beginning, middle and end, where all the stuff he's good at is just a bonus instead of the main attraction.

Well, anyway, there you have it: another year, another Horrorfest. Happy Halloween!