The Sacrament was way more intense than I expected it to be. I more or less knew the general idea behind it (3 reporters from Vice go to a secretive religious commune to do a story on it) and that it was a Ti West joint, a director whose name isn't necessarily equated with tense thrill-ride type films. But I've always been a fan of his slow-burn style, and was excited to see what he did with the found footage/mockumentry aesthetic. In my experience, these FF types of movies tend to be more visceral in their scares - you're seeing some monster or whatever first-hand. The "you are there-ness" of it is what gives it much of punch. And The Sacrament definitely has that - you witness some truly nasty things uncomfortably close up. But what I wasn't expecting was the psychological side of it. This film really goes to some dark and disturbing places. I watched it a few days ago and it's definitely been rattling around in my head ever since.
If they don't suck, most found footage/mockumentry movies have that spooky/funhouse vibe to them - this is not one of those. It's pretty damned serious, actually. But I can't really talk about what I liked/didn't like without spoiling the whole damned thing. I was surprised by where things went, although that could just be my fault for not thinking things through to their logical conclusions. In the interest of staying spoiler-free, this entry could be short. So here's some just kind of random stuff about (and not about) The Sacrament.
Like I said, it gets to be a pretty intense film. But like all of these movies, it takes it's time to get there. But I think the framing device of the three Vice reporters really helps move things along. Most of the time, you always have amateur documentarians in these things. They always pad the film with "am I in the frame?" type questions, random shots, and multiple takes... But the fact that the reporters in The Sacrament are professionals helps sell the fact that they've got good equipment, know what to shoot, what questions to ask, etc. I didn't mind that it takes awhile for The Sacrament to get to the crazy, because I was legitimately engrossed in the faux-documentary.
It helps that the performances are good across the board. At this point, we know none of this is real, so having a few familiar faces didn't hurt my enjoyment. You've got at least 4 people that were in You're Next, and they're all really good. But this movie would sink if the actor playing the leader of the religious commune wasn't up to snuff - luckily Gene Jones hits it out of the park as "Father." They wisely keep him hidden for the first act (you just hear his voice over the commune loudspeakers), so when he shows up he has some big impact. He's has a natural charisma that can either be very parental or kind of sleazy, depending on your perspective. He plays it just right - you are never quite sure if Father truly knows the ramifications of his actions; whether he is a selfish hypocrite or just doing what he thinks is right in the name of God.
Generally speaking, I'm all about religion-bashing in horror movies. Maybe I'm a bad person. I expected The Sacrament to be rife with it, but the film isn't really interested in that. Really, it's more about the power of persuasion, and how the powerful exploit the weak. Religion is just the conduit for it here.
Now, I don't really believe in heaven. But, if I did, one of the things that I'm really hoping for is the ability to take any actor and put them in any movie. It's heaven right? So, if I wanted to watch Dallas Buyers Club and see Steven Seagal in Matthew McConaughey's role, God could hook me up. That's not too much to ask, is it? My first choice, as of this moment, would probably be inserting Tommy Wiseau into the Father role here. Oh Hi Commune!
And now that I'm a couple months into this horror movie every day thing, my mom is starting to get concerned about my welfare. And my wife's - but my mom worries a lot. She just doesn't get the whole horror movie thing - or really any sort of violence in movies. But, if there was one movie that I could get her to watch that would really make her worry about me, it would probably be The Sacrament. So that's a good recommendation.
It's one of those movies that I really liked, but I won't be rushing to watch again.
I would highly recommend this film.
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