Apocalyptic

It's amazing just how many so-called 'found footage' films there are these days. After the success of "The Blair Witch Project", many other independent filmmakers have also sought to make their mark with small budgets and films that supposedly consist of actual footage from real (and usually scary) events. The basic idea isn't bad but there is a problem with too many films trying to cash in on this style of picture. In other words, after a while the films start to have a certain sameness to them and few of the more recent found footage films are particularly watchable. This is my problem with "Apocalyptic", as it fails to break new ground and has an all too familiar ending.

An Australian journalist and her film crew are shown at the beginning of the movie attending an AA-type meeting for addicts. However, one of the participants talks about having escaped from a cult and the reporter smells a story. So, she and the crew get permission from the cult leader, Michael, to stay with them and record their lives. The cult, it turns out is very small--with about a dozen people in it. All are women apart from Michael.

At first the group seems odd but also quite happy. Sure, there are some weird aspects to the group--such as Michael claiming to have divine authority as well as his sleeping with most of the women. But the group still seems fairly normal. However, through the course of the film, Michael reveals himself to be a Jim Jones-type guy and he plans on a mass suicide. This final portion was not especially original--not only because of the famous Jonestown tragedy but because of another recent found footage movie, "The Sacrament", which pretty much recreates the Jonestown deaths. It also comes off as a bit exploitational and creepy watching all this at the end as opposed to being scary.

So is it any good? Well, the film work is pretty much what you expect from such a movie and you get the jerky camera, folks running and the like. But the story, as I already mentioned, lacks freshness. It's just a case of 'been there/done that' and the ending is clearly what most folks watching the film are expecting. It would have been a lot more interesting with some OTHER twist--anything but what the film seemed to telegraph during the first hour or so of the picture. I think everyone associated with the project tried hard and it's watchable, but nothing more unfortunately.

The found footage film continues to be the go-to-guy when it comes to low budget horror film-making. A lot of people are fed up with the sub-genre and it is easy to understand why as, aside from the shaky-cam being capable of inducing headaches, there is also a certain over-familiarity about a lot of them. I consider myself to be fairly forgiving of these types of films myself though and do think the general set-up is one which can result in effectively sinister films when approached correctly. It would probably be fair to describe Apocalyptic as a bit of a mixed bag though. As it never escapes from a certain predictability inherent in found footage and does wind up with the kind of ending that an awful lot in this genre have. But it was still nevertheless a film which was successfully creepy and did keep me interested. Set in Australia, the story has documentary film-makers travel deep into the country to meet up with a religious cult to make a film about them. As could be predicted, these people prove to be very strange and some troubling events follow.

As is common with horror movies, character decisions here are often somewhat illogical, with the film crew hanging around for longer than they should and letting some things slide which they shouldn't. But I guess this is part and parcel of these types of movies to some extent. What was more of an issue for me was the central figure of the cult leader, who unfortunately was fairly badly acted by David Macrae, ensuring that this pivotal character had no charisma at all. I think it was quite damaging, as this is a leader whose actions are so extreme that they require some charisma in order to explain others going along with them so readily, such as the nightly ritual in which he chooses a different woman to sleep with every night, including a (very) young girl. These creepy details, along with the odd behaviour of the women cultists and what is discovered in the woods in the dead of night, are the kinds of things that make this one stand-out though and ensure that it does make some impact. It's a bit too basic and limited overall to be regarded as anything great but it does still offer some off-centre elements and ideas, and it never outstays its welcome.

I kind of expected better just because of the very positive user reviews here on IMDb, or else I wouldn't have had high expectations. It's mildly effective, not at all original. Doing films of this cult-type is very popular, just last year we had The Sacrament, and that one was definitely more effective, even if more of a rehash of the Jonestown events. The acting here is really good though, and probably pushes the film even higher. The cinematography is nice, for a hand-held, and it's also pretty realistic so there's props for that. Ultimately, this just isn't very original and doesn't do much new to like it a lot, but it's decent enough.

The great thing about Chinese food is that you don't have to work very hard to eat it (or at least I don't). I just begin to shovel food in my face.

I was very glad I picked up Chinese food before sitting down to watch Apocalypse because I was so glued to the screen for the last 20 minutes I didn't even realize the bowl was empty.

I'm assuming some people will draw similarities between "Apocolypse" and Ti Wests "The Sacrament" (both based on cults and both released this year) and those similarities are many. However "Apocolypse" is a grittier, more realistic-feeling interpretation of what I think it would look like inside a Doomsday Cult.

While researching "The Sacrament" I kept seeing references to the real life Jonestown Massacres (loosely based upon it?) and that took away some of the mystery for me while watching the film. With "Apocolypse" I had no such pre-conceived notions and therefore was genuinely enthralled by the film and it's surprises

The phrase "shoestring budget" is mentioned on a few websites when I was researching this film I think it was filmed in a very short amount of time with a minuscule amount of money but YOU COULD NOT TELL!

This film looks as good as any major motion picture FoundFootage film out there (Devils Due, Delivery, PA). Even the small details of the film are pretty fantastic, down to the hand-made animal skin shoes the women wear.

Its refreshing for a horror film not to rush and shove the gore in your face. Apocolyptic takes its time and, like a good campfire, uses it's kindling to feed the progression of a growing fire of suspense.

The only downside was the lack of character development of the Cult leader: A Creepy, frail, pale, bald-headed, white-robed re-incarnation of Jesus (supposedly) I wanted to know more about him and really understand why these people worshiped him. The premise of the film revolves around him and his followers but I didn't really feel his charm or charisma come through the screen.

Aside from the similarities to "The Sacrament" I found this a wholly fresh take on the Found Footage trope.

A camera crew - Jodie and Kevin - visits an AA meeting n Australia where they meet a lot of substance abusers. One of the recovering addicts tells them he was in a cult because he thought the leader - Michael - was a prophet. The camera crew is intrigued enough to go on a roadtrip to try finding the cult. Along the way, they talk to locals to get their view of it, who pretty much laugh it off.

In a hotel room, while on the phone, Jodie discovers their AA lead is missing. She and Kevin don't pay much attention to it since he was a druggie, and they feel he probably just wondered off.

The next scene shows they are in a forest, and - cliché time lol - there is no cellphone reception. They meet two young girls who come wandering from behind the trees and they tell the crew to leave behind any communication devices. They are blindfolded and taken to the cult's encampment, which is made up of a few small houses, where they're greeted by many others in the camp, who are all women and young girls. Then they meet Michael. As Jodie interviews him, Michael starts sounding weird. He says "Once you join us, you are bound to us for life." Weirdo alert. During dinner, Jodie finds out that Michael takes a different one of "his" women to his bed every night.

The next day, while interviewing Michael's wife, Jodie discovers the prophecy that Michael mentioned the day before. Part 1 is the moving of the men. She tells Jodie that the men - 9 of them - have already left their earthly bodies and ascended to the new world to prepare it; cue the Twilight Zone theme. Part 2 is the screaming of the girls. Part 3 is the crossing into the new world.

Pervert alert. At dinner, Michael takes one of the little girls - Amy -to his bed :( That night, one of the girls has a screaming attack, which Michael takes as being part 2 of the prophecy. He slaps her across the face and stabs her in the arm with a knife. He and the women then tie her to a tree. This is where the movie really picks up. I can't tell you anymore without spoiling it. I will say that they find their AA lead.

The acting was great, as was the buildup and the story. It's filmed primarily through camcorders, so if you don't like that...well, don't let that dissuade you. The movie was very well done, especially for a low-budget indie.

David Macrae (Michael) was great as the cult leader. He was very believable in the role, as were the rest of the cast. I didn't really expect much from this because, let's face it, it's a low budget indie. However, it was a gripping and thrilling movie. I highly recommend it. I can't really say the story's original since it's been played out in real life, hello Jim Jones. Still it was done in a serious and realistic manner. I do have to say that the ending disturbed me, and I don't get like that very easily.

I gave this a 7-star rating. I might revisit that decision in a few days' time, but it was very well done. And NO, I had nothing to do with this movie, nor did anyone pay me to write a good review. However, if the producer wants to throw some money my way, I'll be grateful. :D lol Seriously, if you look at my reviews, I generally review indie films. Some I give good reviews to. Others, not so much.