Apocalyptic (2014)

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.

Foundish footage of normal folk confronting weird stuff in the woods.Strange rumours are heard by nosey people with cameras. Enquiries are made, the task is set. The car is left in the middle of nowhere, and a journey into Hell begins.Not much to add. The heroes/inquirers aren't of much interest - he's geeky with a conscience, she's ditzy and ambitious. The villain is well played, although his apocalypse is vague. The scares are not too scary.I say foundish footage, because the geek escaped with his camera near the end. As far as I could tell he didn't get captured. Maybe I missed it. I didn't really care.Most interesting aspect was the mist. I guess they got lucky on the day.The end is uninspired, although they did find a use for trembling cam to suggest the coming of ... THE APOCALYPSE!

Refreshing film from Australia picks up on the new trend of combining found footage and Cults. Two documentary filmmakers follow a trail of clues until they are invited to spend a few days at a cult deep in the forests of Australia. When they get there things start really getting bizarre. As they start following the daily lives of the cult members and interviewing them it becomes clear that things just aren't right. The leader, a creepy old man named Michael, regales them with tales of the apocalypse and their little group's role in it. The cult is comprised only of women and girls. Where did the men go?Comparisons can be drawn here to Ti West's "The Sacrament," and rightfully so, but this one is so much more bizarre and sinister that it seems more like a horror movie than a rehashing of the Jonestown Massacre.There are allusions to pedophilia and murder and so much else. The mood is just perfect and the scenery is at once beautiful and strangely creepy. The ending is startling as well as ambiguous and just perfect for this type of movie. It definitely kept me enthralled throughout. Highly recommended for fans of the genre, and fans of horror in general.

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.