The Commune

The Commune is a film with a vast array of themes: sexual discovery, what it means to be a woman and, subsequently, come of age. But the film also deals with the loss of innocence and how those in power, namely your parental figures, can abuse it for their own self-serving needs. Overall, the film delivers in a way that recalls the slow burn of films like The Wicker Man and Rosemary's Baby. And along with it, comes a stellar building of tension and atmosphere.

Our story starts with a young girl named Jennifer. Fresh out of school for the summer break, she's forced to spend time with her fairly non-existent father. You see, her parents divorced when she was little and her dad left and started a new age-y type of commune with a group of followers.

From the time she first arrives, an eerie sense of foreboding permeates. As the film evolves and the creepy on screen antics of the characters escalate, Jennifer discovers that her father has been hiding a lot more than she thought. This coupled with a scene in which the father subtly makes a pass, your are led to believe that he has less than favorable intentions for his daughter. After a few childhood flashbacks and a revelation that the daughter is not as pure as originally thought, we are brought to a shocking and brutal climax to our film.

The Commune is a fine first effort from filmmaker Elisabeth Fies. The film truly lives up to its tag line: 'Every Girl's Worst Fear.'

A cutting edge, well structured homage to a 1970's cinematic feel and tone. Well directed, well acted. A taunt psychological thriller and a very important film. This film is a liberation and a testimony to the fact that there is art left in cinema today.Elisbeth Fies shows a rare cinematic deftness and skill. The film is lush and full of character detail and thought. The plot line is a journey into a dark psychological depth and will an amazing execution. We will be see much more of MS Fies in the future we hope.

Elisabeth received the award for Best Emerging Filmmaker this year at The B Movie Celebration.

First, I'm not even sure if I should call this movie a "horror" movie. Yes, it involves a few horrible acts, but when I think of a "horror" movie -- especially by today's standards -- I picture some PG-13 crap with a bunch of teenagers running away from an unstoppable killer for 90 minutes.

This isn't that kind of movie, not by a long shot.

And when I say it's an indie film, I don't mean it's indie compared to Transformers 2. I mean it's indie in the truest sense of the word. It appears to have been created by a bunch of like-minded people motivated by their love of movies and devotion to the story they wanted to tell, not by profit.

I have no idea what the budget was for this movie, but I'm guessing it was pretty small. And yet that doesn't come across on film. It's a "small" movie, in that there aren't a lot of locations and the cast is small and there aren't any special effects. But it never feels like a "cheap" movie. It's well-shot, the sound is good, and the music was particularly strong.

The story involves Jenny (don't call her Jen!), a 16-year old girl forced to spend time with her estranged father as part of a custody agreement. Her father's some kind of hippie guru and lives in a weird commune. Jenny arrives at the commune and we initially get a lot of fish-out-of-water / culture clash humor. But the humor's offset nicely by an undercurrent of creepiness to everything.

Jenny soon meets Puck, a kid who lives in the nearby town. They strike up a friendship, and spend more and more time with each other as Jenny is continually creeped out at the commune.

I won't spoil the rest of the film. As I said before, it's not what I'd call a "horror" film, per se. Maybe more of a psychological thriller. But it's also got strong elements of black comedy. It's my kind of movie, in that it slides quite comfortably back and forth between genres.

I found the high point of the film to be at the beginning of the third act, in a prolonged scene between Jenny and Puck. Elisabeth Fies, the writer / director / co-star, establishes a really intimate, genuine, raw moment between her two characters.

If you're in the mood for something different, and want to support truly independent filmmakers, check out The Commune.

Plot-this is a Greek tragedy mixed with a 70′s sexual thriller. This movie centers on the summer of Jenny's 16th birthday. Her mom wants her to spend some time with her deadbeat father in his commune. Jenny does not want to go or be part of her dad's life. Once she gets to the commune she starts to see things that disturb her, and does not know who is who.

Review-Elisabeth Fies is in the movie, and even does a nude scene. I am not sure if this is a first, the director being the only person to go nude but I had to mention this because for a film like this it is a brave move. The beginning of the movie has a disturbing scene, which I will not talk about but tell you guys it sells the film and what it will offer you. The movie does a great job of explaining how we get to certain parts of this film, in almost a way that would make Hitchcock smile. This movie is a very slow build, but the script is pretty good and keeps you the viewer involved and your attention, and the characters are not boring or one sided, that you question each one, and not sure who to follow or believe in. This film created paranoia about it that you feel like you are watching a very head scratching episode of the Twilight Zone. The movie has a few scenes that really are creepily awesome and very well done for a small budget indie, and for that the acting deserves so much respect. This is what M Night should have put out instead of the shitty Village, and it is sad to watch this film and know that if they had a much bigger budget what could have come out of it. Films like this make me question what Hollywood is putting their money into these days, and what they are ignoring. This movie is impressive if you think about the budget, and also you can see Elisabeth's heart and passion all over this film. This is not a typical horror movie as it is a thriller that would be good to show someone who wants mood over blood and a movie to make them think scene to scene and catches you on surprise as well. I also want to point out the bonus features that there was a lot of work put into them. And Elisabeth really shines throughout. I am impressed with Fies talent and thinks she has a bright future. Hollywood give this woman a budget and let's see what she can give us next. Plus any director who will do her own nude scenes and really go outside the box with her performance deserves a break.

The typical horror fan may or may not like this film; it depends on their attention span. If you can sit thru a film and can invest into a slow build and know that the payoff will be worth it, this is a film for you.

7 out of 10

Also, I want to tell the fans to keep Chauntal Lew is in their prayers.

A few years ago, the lead actress of this film lost her hand and is recovering day by day

The Commune, like its lovely heroine, is between a rock and a hard place in a world of delusional, narcissists. It doesn't fit neatly into some prepackaged genre category that Pod People can easily consume sans participation or reflection. This film is an experience best accompanied by active thought and post-viewing discussion. Michael Bay fans may wanna stay clear.

That said, one would not be wrong to call it a horror film. Like Wicker Man (as many before me have aptly referenced) and many of Polanski's darker films, it ventures into territory far too horrific to suggest it is any other genre. However, the movie I watched was more of a post-modern "coming-of-age" turns "psycho-drama" with speckles of dark humor and surrealism inter-woven throughout. Part Alan Ball, part Samuel Fuller, and a whole lot of the delightfully twisted Lis Fies, The Commune is a wonderful achievement in making a low budget look high, making human ugliness look gorgeous, and making us leave the theater with that same sick feeling in the pit of our stomachs as did American Beauty, Happiness, Blue Velvet and Stepford Wives (the original, that is). The Commune reminds us that while life might sometimes appear to be in pretty Technicolor on the outside, one must never forget to look below the surface where the scariest monsters most often reside.

Kudos to any independent filmmaker who strives for intelligence as well as artistry, without being held back by limited budgets. Double kudos to Lis Fies for succeeding.