The Horror Show
The Sacrament
by Ti West
The Sacrament is Ti West’s latest feature film. I have seen both House of the Devil and The Innkeepers, as well as his segments in V/H/S and The ABC’s of Death. So far, I genuinely enjoy his work, with the exception of his short “M is for Miscarriage.” Needless to say, I’ve been looking forward to this film for some time. Unfortunately, I’m cursed with living in an area that doesn’t get limited releases. Luckily for me, I was able to rent it from Amazon Instant Video.
Patrick, Jake, and Sam travel to Eden Parish, a commune started by the figure known as “Father.” Patrick goes in hopes of contacting his sister and trying to bring her home. Jake and Sam accompany him thinking that there is a potential story. Father has taken former drug addicts and alcoholics in and together they have made a paradise. On the surface, things appear to be great...until the outsiders encounter a mother and daughter who are hesitant to talk, unlike the rest of the followers. Patrick’s sister grants Sam permission to interview Father and the interview starts off very typical. Sam starts to pry more than he should and offends Father a little. Father is able to jokingly dismiss it but then turns the tides on Sam. He begins asking difficult questions that Sam has trouble answering. Father shows knowledge of information that he shouldn’t posses. Despite how weird things seem, the crew decides that everyone seems happy and are willing to leave in peace. The daughter approaches them again, this time carrying a note asking for help. Things immediately take a dark turn after that.
For those who don’t know, this film is inspired by the event of the Jonestown Massacre. So, spoiler alert! I will be talking a bit about the event in this paragraph. I suggest moving on to the next paragraph if you don’t want the end of the movie ruined. The Sacrament isn’t a historical interpretation of the events that actually happened. It does, however, borrow heavily from its real world counterpart. Cult leader Jim Jones lured about 900 people to Guyana to build their commune. Jones then lead his followers in mass suicide with poisoned kool-aid. I thought it was a weird direction for West to go in. It was quite a different approach from The Innkeepers and House of the Devil. I half suspected that there would be some sort of supernatural twist towards the end, but that was never delivered. Now, I’m not complaining. I just wasn’t prepared for it. It did deliver an emotionally powerful ending. It was hard to watch people poison their children, babies even. Father’s followers were divided amongst themselves. Some willingly drank the poison, some begrudgingly accepted it, and some downright refused. Those who refused to drink were shot. The entire movie I was sad because I knew Jonestown didn’t have a happy ending.
One criticism people may have with this movie is that this is found footage. I’ve heard arguments it’s just a way to save money. That is true but I still like found footage. I think in The Sacrament found footage serves a purpose. Cameramen were on the real world expedition to Jonestown. Some have also argued that the fictional filmmakers in found footage continue to film long after a reasonable person would have quit, when in reality the NBC cameraman in Jonestown actually captured some footage of the shooting. Also tackling the previous argument, there is even a moment where Jake abandons his camera to evade his followers. We don’t actually see Jake abandon his camera. We assume he was hiding with his camera. That was a brilliant moment in the film. But they only found a camera. That shot could have never been done as well without this subgenre. Found footage with a purpose is a great tool.
Ti West, in my opinion, is great at slowly building a sense of dread. We feel that at any moment something could happen, but it doesn’t. He always puts if off, until the end. Like in House of the Devil and the Innkeepers, all the suspense releases into a crazy climax. I know a few people who find it boring and claim that nothing happens. It’s just subtle, but I like subtle. I don’t like getting hit in the face with stop and go suspense and action. West also makes us care immediately about his characters. He revealed Sam to be a future father, a good trick to humanize a character quickly. AJ Bowen’s performance helped deliver that too. Bowen, as Sam, stared longingly at a photo of his wife. It was kind of cute. He’s much more compassionate in this film than in any other I’ve seen him in. He makes you care about Sam so much you expect him to not make it, I won’t say if he does or doesn’t though. Bowen often plays the antagonist. This role was a refreshing new step for him. I overall thought this was a great film.
If you don’t like found footage, it’s still a good movie. I suggest trying to get past it because this was a story worth telling. I feel like most people, after watching this, will look up the Jonestown Massacre out of curiosity. I think that’s where the real power of movies lay. When we see a movie based on real events, we want to know more about what actually happened. It’s a great way to raise awareness. If it’s in a theater near you, you should make your way there now. If not, rent it from Amazon. Ten dollars is well worth the price, actually cheaper than seeing it in theaters, most of the time.
Billy Wayne Martin, HMS
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