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Stories centering on a cult are an interesting horror subgenre. It’s always fascinating to be introduced to a new group of strange characters, led by an even stranger character, who basks in the glow of their worship. Sometimes there is a supernatural element at play, other times, it’s just the evils of humanity that drive the story forward. But it’s always interesting to see this level of arrogance and charisma gather a group of followers and watch the dastardly things they will get up to in the name of “a higher purpose.” Waking Karma, directed by Carlos Montaner and Liz Fania Werner (who also penned the screenplay) is an interesting addition to this corner of horror storytelling.

At a glance, Karma (Hannah Christine Shetler) is a pretty normal teenager. She lives with her single mother, she texts obsessively with her friends, she is excited to go away...

Between a creepy ritual murder and a montage of newspaper headlines about cults, Waking Karma shows promise in its first few minutes. The story then shifts to its young main character, Karma (Hannah Christine Shetler), who is struggling to tell her mother Sunny (Kimberly Alexander) about her acceptance to Harvard. What should be good news becomes the start of an uncomfortable and long overdue conversation. Karma doesn’t know how Sunny will react; the two have been inseparable since they escaped a cult.

Carlos Montaner and Liz Fania Werner’s movie loses its mystique as soon as Karma asks her mother about her estranged father, Paul, and Sunny does what she always does; she acts shifty and stays quiet. Regardless of her weirdness, Karma doesn’t suspect anything. Not even when the two receive a foreboding letter from Paul, saying he’s coming for his daughter. The timing of the letter,...