Believers

I had this flick already a few tiles in my hand but a few weeks ago i found it at a sale for only 2 euro's. The DVD sleeve made you guess, well this is going to be a ride to hell but it wasn't. There is a lot of talking in this flick and for me there was a bit too much of it. Another thing was that the main role played by Johnny Messner couldn't convince me. And if you have that as a problem then the movie doesn't work. Also, the voice of The Teacher made me think of Jigsaw from the Saw franchise. What was good was the fact that you can see how easily you can get into the believe of a cult. The ending was what I should call original and that was for many people the strongest part of it. I can't say that it is a horror or a science fiction, for me it was more a movie that made you think.

With two competent leads (Johnny Messner and Jon Huertas as paramedics abducted by a cult), one fairly entrancing nemesis (Daniel Benzali as the cult leader), seeds of a good story and decent direction, one immediately thinks this movie could have been much better.

Writers Daniel Myrick, Julia Fair and Daniel Noah seem to have come up with a basic idea, without being able to elaborate the concept further. The result is a story with few interesting elements in-between its introduction and conclusion, and no rhythm whatsoever.

Details of the cult are brushed over. Viewers are probably supposed to see this as shrouded in mystery but instead, the sentiment is that the writers failed to flesh out these things. And since none of the imagery, dialog or plot element is particularly engrossing, we can't take a "mind trip" as if this was a Lynch movie either, because use symbolism in this film is weak and immature.

Director Daniel Myrick (Blair Witch Project, The Objective) has done much better in the past but here, there's simply not enough happening to sustain our attention for long. If the details were to remain that sketchy, I think this would have been better off as a sort of Twilight Zone TV episode.

I appreciate the attempt but this is Myrick's weakest movie I have seen.

Pretty Good STV Study of the "Death Cult" like Jonestown/Waco. The Problem here is the Evil doers are not very Scary or Interesting. The Human Religious Counterpoint is a Superstitious, St. Christopher clasping Minority who Whines a lot.

It seems that when You Reduce everything to an Equation and Formula, much of the Heart and Soul is canceled. No Need for Alien Soul Snatching or Demonic Possession, the "Language of the Universe" is enough to Eradicate Free Will.

The Cultist go about Their Brainwashing and Bad Deeds in a Dry, Methodical, Mathematically based Theology so Matter of Fact that the Drama Suffers. The Film Never quite Reaches that "Twilight Zone" Atmosphere it is searching for, until the very Last Scene.

After watching Myrick's "The Objective", I wanted to check out his other films that went straight to DVD and this was my first pick. The premise is interesting, two paramedics are "abducted" into a suicide cult of sorts and must get away before it's too late for them.

There's a layer of religion (also seen in movies like "Frailty") that is really the crux of the movie - which makes us question the true motives behind religious preachers, missionaries and insane cults, as well as presenting us with an atheist point of view.

The ending is the movie's strongest point, and it again poses the viewers with an important question. Myrick seems to like to ask more question than answers in his movies and "Believers" is no exception. This is a low-budget flick best seen with low expectations.

5/10

I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed this film. It's so rare to find a good sci-fi type thriller. It seems like all the scary movies these days cater to the lowest common denominator, doing fast cuts, lots of gore. I enjoyed the creepy pacing and the smart story.

There were a few groaner moments, of the "oh, that was very convenient" kind, and it's clear that this was a low-budget movie. But overall it had a very smart plot, with solid acting, and a nice creepy tone. A fun find!

I wouldn't recommend this to the horror gore-hounds, but if you're looking for a smart, thriller type of movie, this is a good one.