Pater Noster and the Mission of Light

Man, where do I even begin with Pater Noster and the Mission of Light? This isn't just a movie, it's a fever dream, a time machine made of celluloid catapulting you into the sun-drenched, acid-tinged haze of the '70s-only to drop you straight into the heart of unrelenting terror. It's raw, electric, and brimming with the kind of energy only the underground can conjure.

Max, our guide into this kaleidoscopic nightmare, is your every-kid-stacking vinyls in a dusty shop, looking for nothing more than the next song to stitch her life together. Then she stumbles upon it. The record. A black mirror that sings, pulling her into the grooves of a long-lost world-a commune promising love and light but delivering shadows and sacrifice.

The movie doesn't just tell you a story; it channels it. Shot for the price of a beat-up VW van, every frame feels gritty and raw, like it's been marinated in patchouli and fear. The cult's remnants-those wide-eyed, sunken-cheeked keepers of secrets better left buried-pull you in with their cracked smiles and promises of enlightenment. But you know better. You feel it. There's rot under the flowers, and it's spreading

This isn't a movie for everyone. It's messy, chaotic, and unpolished, like a poem scrawled on a napkin at 3 AM in some dive bar. But if you're the kind of person who gets it-who feels the call of the weird and the wild-it's a revelation.

So, roll the dice, press play, and dive in. Just don't expect to come out the same on the other side. Like the best of the underground, Pater Noster and the Mission of Light doesn't ask for your attention-it demands it, and once it's got you, it won't let go.

I'm so glad I made the effort to see this one on the big screen--Chris Bickel is a genius at film and music genres and he has studied them his entire life--and it shows in PN and The Mission of Light. A Beautiful classic horror flick! I was worried that it would give me PTSD like some recent horror films but this film was perfect! It was scary but I walked away feeling great!

The storyline: A California-type cult from the 70's strayed from its original purpose and became a Satanic nightmare. A modern-day record store collector is drawn to it but after she and her friends discover the mysterious group, assuming that they're just a friendly family lead by an MIT professor, everything goes south...

As a vinyl collector who also has more than a passing interest in cults, this indie horror flick sounded tailor made for me. I was not disappointed. It was obviously written by someone who is well versed in both obsessive music collection and religious cults. While it does suffer a little from some of the typical issues present in many low budget efforts (some of the acting and dialog could be a little stronger), it more than makes up for it with its ambitious scope and the gonzo nature of the final act. Gorehounds will not be disappointed, the practical effects are well done and plentiful. The catchy and authentic sounding cult tunes didn't hurt either. I liked it so much after watching it streaming online that I bought the Blu Ray.

I had no involvement in the making of this film and did not even contribute to the crowdfunding campaign. I just read some other good reviews of it online and gave it a chance.

Honestly, for general audiences this movie would probably rate a 4-5. However, for those who like low budget gorefests, I'd rate it a solid 8.

Probably my favorite horror movie of the year. Low budget, but that doesn't detract from the effectiveness of the FX. In fact, the sticky quality of the blood is a nice throwback to the 70s and 80s genre flicks we all love. Predictable on occasion, but surprising where it counts. I mean, young people going to a remote location in the woods to meet with a cult leader? I wonder what will happen? Still, the specifics are fresh and the vinyl record take on the necronomicon trope is kind of inspired. Only reason it's not a 10 is that at times it tries to be gratuitous for the sake of being gratuitous and I didn't find that those couple scenes stuck the landing. Overall, a spectacularly fun movie!

TLDR: An interesting homage to old school cult cinema with a soundtrack that is strangely addictive. While an enjoyable watch, the film suffers from the normal issues with lower budget indie cinema in that that production value is lower and the script may have benefited from one more pass.

Christopher Bickel does a solid job with his throw back cult film about a nefarious hippie commune who uses music to lure in an unsuspecting record store clerk into a situation straight out of 60's/70's psychedelic cinema. The cast here is fairly good with the standouts being Adara Starr as the main protagonist, Max, and I was thoroughly entertained by Mike Amason as Pater Noster. The rest of the cast rounds it out well enough considering the budgetary restraints. The gore, surprisingly, was ample and utilized a style befitting of the timeframe. Some cliches and tropes had me rolling my eyes at times, but with any homage to a classic style of cinema that is to be expected. I don't foresee that many audience members will capture anything new in this film, but it's use of music both as an inciting event and as a frame for the story was well done and not something that I see very often. The idea of a film having it's own score/soundtrack is a lost art in modern cinema and I really wish it would make a comeback. Short story long, this is an entertaining, throwback piece of low-budget cinema that deserves a watch by anyone who is a) a fan of folk music, b) a fan of cult cinema, and c) someone looking for something new to see but is tired of the bloated studio fare that is normally served up.