Wild Wild Country

What's great about this show is that it never takes sides, instead shows everyone telling their side and letting you figure out who's lying (lots) and who's honest. I wish there'd been a touch more expansion on the pre and post worlds, but I get that the focus was on the Oregon episode, so it's hardly critical. What was most striking here was how bigoted and clueless the people of Antelope were, how racist and NIMBY. And yet, the cult itself was messed up, so both sides have merit! Find your own truth!

The last two years I've been absolutely astonished about the sheer quality of docu-series Netflix has been bringing out. "Making a murderer", "Flint town", "The Keepers", to name a few.

But this one was especially on some level really emotional for me. As I myself was raised in a Indian cult. Not this one, but many aspects are almost identical. I am now 27 and I still struggle on a daily base with many things that were taught to me at such a young age. What struck me was how well portrayed this guy was. The almost hypnotically way he could look, and even walk, got people in some sort of a trance. I myself experienced many times where we saw our "Guru" talk, and he had the same aura that also Baghwan has. The other aspect that struck me was them talking about following, but you could feel they actually were all deeply in love with him. A cult leader is not someone you follow, you fall deeply and madly in love with him. This happened to my mother and even after leaving almost 15 years ago, she still can't stop looking to this new love. She never became a stable person again in her life.

The docu itself should be an example to future docu makers. The pacing is nearly perfect. The interviews are well paced, just a few people on different sides, and somehow you all get some sort of attachment to their side of the story. You strongly get the feeling from episode one that nothing is black and white. And that all of these people strongly believed in their cause. There is no one who had the complete truth or did the complete right thing. And Baghwan is equal mysterious in this documentary than in real life. Somehow they don't try to explain the person Baghwan, because you simply cannot explain him. In that way his followers were absolutely right. He is a one of a kind person, and to others he was a con man. For me? He is something in between.

Impressively done documentary that even after 5 to 6 hours still leaves too many questions unanswered. Too much focus on the neighbors, too little on actual life within the commune. Respectful interviewing, but not thorough enough. I'm still very fascinated though. How charismatic must people be and how wonderful the commune life that you don't get absolutely disgusted with the extreme greed of your leader and the aggression of his secretary?

Although some of the former members dismiss the term cult when referring to the Rajneesh movement, it undoubtedly shows a range of similarities to what might be referred to as a cult. Nonetheless the documentary series Wild Wild Country proofed surprisingly succesful in offering insights that go beyond the taboos and stigmas normally surrounding the subject. Clearly the Rajneesh movement was something that the world had not seen before and the world, perhaps, hasn't seen since.

Focussing around the Indian guru Rajneesh, later known as Osho, the documentary starts off by exploring the very beginning of the movement. Its unorthodox teachings, controversial beliefs as well as its international reach slowly unfold during the first episode of the documentary series. Gradually the focus of the documentary however shifts towards the individuals who circulated within the inner circles of the movement. This inevitably transforms the documentary into an exposition of 'the individual as part of a cult' rather than an exploration of the deeper beliefs of the movement (which at times seem contradictory).

Nonetheless the documentary continues to captivate the viewer as opposition against the movement arises during the cults relocation in Oregon. It is here where the movement encounters more and more opposition which in return fuels the hostility from members towards outsiders. It is not unlike patterns we've seen with cults like the church of Scientology and the Peoples Temple where, once a stark contrast between in- and outsiders has been established, a cult turns violent. The documentary manages to explore the depths of the criminal activities in which the Rajneesh movement was involved without overtly (or excessively) steering its viewers towards a certain point of view. The result is a story that shocks without excessive dramatization.

What makes this documentary worthwhile is the way the story unfolds. Although spread over six different episodes the documentary could be seen as one climactic film in which tension continues to build until it has reached its inevitable climax. Surprisingly the documentary does not necessarily leave one to wonder how people could ever be part of the group, for it also displays the movements admirable qualities. Rather it leaves you to ask how knowledge about the Rajneesh movement could have been absent for you prior to watching the documentary series. If this is the case indeed, then this is a must-watch.

To me personally the appeal of the movements leader remains unclear. This ofcourse could be explained by the lack of insights the documentary offers regarding his background and the very origine of the movement. So yes, the documentary will leave you with many questions. But rather than leaving you with the illusion of presenting the full story, the documentary ignites within you a thirst for knowledge. I guess that is exactly what one might demand from documentaries: the desire to know more.

I'm not into cult, but this documentary really blows my mind. Learnt so much history about the town, the religion and the whole process. It gets better and better each episode, couldn't stop watching! It's crazy that this is only back in the 80s.