Holy Hell

A wild cult story with relevant interviews that provide and in depth look at 'the master' and his descent into madness. Great documentary style that abounded in first person accounts and videos.

Wow! I loved it! I stumbled upon this on CNN, and started watching because of my love for documentaries, and interest in the bizarre, such as cults. My review is based on what I thought of the movie, and not the accuracy of what some other members of the cult think. First of all, it's hilarious, and I mean hilarious! The movie keeps moving never a dull moment. I had to google this cult when I completed the movie, because I thought it was a mockumentary. I was wrong. It really happened. Lastly, if you are currently in this cult, please get more footage so I don't have to join it to get my own. There is enough footage to judge for yourself whether or not you believe this is a true account, or whether wrong was done. Cult members always remind me of drug addicts, or drug users, they are there for a reason. Drug addicts will always tell you how bad drugs are and how it ruined their life. Drug users will tell you about the fun and crazy times they had, and why they occasionally use them. One is a positive experience, and the other a negative one, but for the same thing. This movie does a good job at conveying the differences in cult members opinions. The reviews I read discussed these issues, and no mention of humor. Trust me, this movie is absolutely hilarious.

Frankly, I'm a bit baffled at a lot of these reviews.

I have seen numerous reviews implying that these people are stupid, that this wasn't actually a cult, that men in their 20's can't be sexually abused and why didn't they "just leave" and a whole myriad of other things. I think that's a pretty ignorant perspective.

Personally, I can empathize with these people on a small scale. I did not undergo the intensity that they experienced, but I was in a similar situation for about 18 years. I can tell you that anyone can get drawn in to that kind of codependent abusive cycle, given the right circumstances. It's psychological. It's not crazy. They're not stupid. It's just human behavior, when presented with the right stimulus.

This documentary touched me, and shed light on so many topics surrounding abuse, trauma, codependency, cult psyche, manipulation tactics, I could go on and on. It reveals a common truth about most people, that we want to be loved, accepted and apart of something, and sometimes you get trapped in those ideals. My heart breaks for these people, and I feel angry at the comments and reviews calling them stupid and gullible. I feel like that defies the entire premise of the documentary, because I think that it broke down the exact fundamentals of how a cult works. Cults don't always start out like cults. But somewhere along the way, everything turns inside out and people are usually in too deep to see it from a rational perspective.

This was a fascinating and revealing tale, and I highly recommend watching if you have any interest in psychology, sociology, religion, cults... just watch it people. And try to see through their perspective and experiences rather that judging from your own.

Intriguing documentary about a homosexual predator/cult leader who used his experience in hypnosis and acting to prey upon adult cult members in Los Angeles who to this day fail to accept responsibility for going along with it. There is no doubt that cult leader Michel was/is a terrible person and sexual predator, but this doc does an even better job of exposing the foolishness and desperation of his New Age followers.

This is an absorbing document about a cult of body beautiful in West Hollywood led by a gay guru who secretly slept with the males in his cult all the while preaching celibacy. The group was supposed to be about finding god but it was about the leader. He never dressed, preferring to run around in a Speedo and the rest of his young cult rarely dressed in more than bikinis. How can sensible adults deny that sex is fundamental to planet earth? I always think when pondering sex-"hating" cults. One of the most engrossing things about watching this group of delusionals is the slow arc presented. It's well paced, so that the movement to, in, through and back out of the cult is fluid. Unlike most cult exposés this doesn't end with death or prison; this ends with an exodus to Hawaii. We should all end so ignominiously.