Prisonnière d'une secte

I like to watch horror flicks after a long day and since I sleep in Saturdays and had someone gullible writing my reports for me, I stayed up late checking out ONE OF US. Pretty good stuff. Plenty of terror without needing blood and gore. I liked it so much I nearly forgot I spilled beer on my new jacket earlier that day while driving. Two things I hate, bad movies and manure, and this movie ain't either of em.

How in world did this bland snooze fest get labeled as a horror movie? It's barely even a psychological thriller. I've seen Disney channel originals with more tension and better acting. By the time it was over I was past caring what happened. I kept thinking that any minute something exciting would happen, but I was sorely disappointed. I mean, if your grandma came over and you wanted something tame to watch, this could work. I have a feeling that all of the good reviews for this movie are from people who made it. Save yourself the time and watch a Lifetime movie, where at least they're aware that the movie they're making is ridiculous.

For a PG-13 flick, it is very entertaining. It has the right amount of suspense and intrigue, coupled with minimal CGI special effects for the ultimate psychological thriller. It definitely had me hooked with the creep factor, as you will see in the dream sequences. The acting was well done and the film was refreshingly different from what is out there. You will not be disappointed.

Now when i say "cult movie", i mean a literal cult movie, that is, a movie about cults. i found the depiction of the cult leader and his subjects to be very realistic and educational. i've had some experience deprogramming some of these type of people and let me tell you this movie gets the facts right. The leader does not come across as some raving lunatic, but rather as a friendly father figure or surrogate. Very well made movie with some great performances, particularly from the cult leader and the young women playing the cult members that have been indoctrinated.

My initial review for 'One of Us' was deleted for being too harsh. I suppose I just really wanted to get across how much I did not like this film. I will now rewrite my review and simply present the facts, whilst trying not to sound overly hate-filled. Here we go.

'One of Us' is flawed in many areas. The biggest one would have to be the acting. The acting is bad from almost the entire cast, however the most important role they got wrong was that of 'Brent' played by Derek Smith. This role really needed someone with some genuine charisma to sell the story that they are trying to tell. Smith simply didn't have it sadly.

The next flaw lies in the dialogue the actors have to work with. It's not written well. It's clunky and unnatural almost throughout the entire film. They just needed someone to come in with some expertise and strengthen the script up a bit.

The final problem lies in the blandness of the whole experience. I've seen children's movies with more violence than this film gets away with. Anything that does happen is off screen. Were the sensors on them that heavily that they felt this was necessary, or was this an creative decision on the director's part? Either way it makes for a very dull experience.

It's tough to find any positives worth mentioning for 'One of Us'. It's not a film that I could recommend spending your time or money on.