Wow. What a stunning documentary. I am quite literally stunned. In the stunning realm of all things stunned, I may indeed be King stunned!...or stupefied, or both, heck I don't know! Somebody show me the light, as I'm sure this cast would be more than up to the task of doing...being experts in ignorance and all.
Where do I begin?...how about with the actual 'documentary' aspect of it itself: disappointing. I admittedly prefer a documentary that has something of an agenda, or at least a point, and none was to be found here. I understand letting the movie 'speak for itself' to deliver whatever message you choose to take away from it I really do. Unfortunately, even that seemed beyond the scope of this film. The people that were featured did NOTHING to effectively deliver the message of salvation and underscored hypocrisy on so many levels I'm sincerely having a difficult time organizing my thoughts here. As well, strangely enough, the only real intelligence shown by anyone in this film is the person we don't see, you remember her I'm sure, she's the one who met someone on the internet and made it out of the cult! (Hooray!) Perhaps my previous statements aren't quite accurate, maybe there was a clear message and I simply disagree with it...quite likely as I am a disagreeable sort, but the blind and unthinking devotion that is being commanded here is ENTIRELY based on fear...and here I thought all along that religion was based on FAITH! (Yes, me am dumb and naive) These people are going to bully you into believing along the same lines as them or condemn you to HELL (I refuse to even comment on their ultimatum where you have six seconds to decide on praying with them and saving your self or taking your chances, knowing what you know about yourself, aside from noting that it is the most blatant bullying I've witnessed since 3rd grade).
Others have already fairly clearly and accurately commented on peoples perverse enthusiasm to be a part of this project. (Oh to be granted the privilege of being the 'rape-girl'! And what a fabulous little rape-girl you were sweety!) So I won't dwell too long on this...but possibly the scariest part of this film is how blind all of its participants are...all of them. Thinking that religion was supposed to be about faith, I suppose I wasn't prepared to see quite so narrow a view of the world. In their little world its reasonable for example that white people wouldn't feel comfortable being led by a black pastor (or priest or father)...and this is stated plainly and matter-of-factly in the film as though 'well you know what I mean' type manner. This type of ignorance continues through several social issues, all of which appear to blame the victims of some mis-deeds or situations they had no control over. The gay-incest-rape-rape victim afflicted with AIDS, the rave-rape girl, the teased-to-suicide boy, and lets not to forget my fave the ETERNALLY evil-'i-made-it-out-of-the-cult' wife. Heathens all!...right? Right.
The misguided, heavily skewed, and just plain @ssbackward views that these people ARE frightening. Their hypocrisy is rampant and their position would be hard enough to defend had they showed some intelligence or at least independent thought. Sadly, they only appear as pathetic sheep that cannot cope with the world in which they live. They need the group dynamic that their relig...sorry cult has offered them in order to cope with the world. They need support to make sense of a chaotic and imperfect world, and they will follow their blind and beligerant ignorance regardless of the inconsistency that is displayed. They show no faith in their God or 'religion', only fear...fear of damnation, fear of eternal suffering, fear of the living hell that exists in their minds...and fascinates them.
These people need faith...religion, but they are taking the long road going through Hell House to try and find it.
Where do I begin?...how about with the actual 'documentary' aspect of it itself: disappointing. I admittedly prefer a documentary that has something of an agenda, or at least a point, and none was to be found here. I understand letting the movie 'speak for itself' to deliver whatever message you choose to take away from it I really do. Unfortunately, even that seemed beyond the scope of this film. The people that were featured did NOTHING to effectively deliver the message of salvation and underscored hypocrisy on so many levels I'm sincerely having a difficult time organizing my thoughts here. As well, strangely enough, the only real intelligence shown by anyone in this film is the person we don't see, you remember her I'm sure, she's the one who met someone on the internet and made it out of the cult! (Hooray!) Perhaps my previous statements aren't quite accurate, maybe there was a clear message and I simply disagree with it...quite likely as I am a disagreeable sort, but the blind and unthinking devotion that is being commanded here is ENTIRELY based on fear...and here I thought all along that religion was based on FAITH! (Yes, me am dumb and naive) These people are going to bully you into believing along the same lines as them or condemn you to HELL (I refuse to even comment on their ultimatum where you have six seconds to decide on praying with them and saving your self or taking your chances, knowing what you know about yourself, aside from noting that it is the most blatant bullying I've witnessed since 3rd grade).
Others have already fairly clearly and accurately commented on peoples perverse enthusiasm to be a part of this project. (Oh to be granted the privilege of being the 'rape-girl'! And what a fabulous little rape-girl you were sweety!) So I won't dwell too long on this...but possibly the scariest part of this film is how blind all of its participants are...all of them. Thinking that religion was supposed to be about faith, I suppose I wasn't prepared to see quite so narrow a view of the world. In their little world its reasonable for example that white people wouldn't feel comfortable being led by a black pastor (or priest or father)...and this is stated plainly and matter-of-factly in the film as though 'well you know what I mean' type manner. This type of ignorance continues through several social issues, all of which appear to blame the victims of some mis-deeds or situations they had no control over. The gay-incest-rape-rape victim afflicted with AIDS, the rave-rape girl, the teased-to-suicide boy, and lets not to forget my fave the ETERNALLY evil-'i-made-it-out-of-the-cult' wife. Heathens all!...right? Right.
The misguided, heavily skewed, and just plain @ssbackward views that these people ARE frightening. Their hypocrisy is rampant and their position would be hard enough to defend had they showed some intelligence or at least independent thought. Sadly, they only appear as pathetic sheep that cannot cope with the world in which they live. They need the group dynamic that their relig...sorry cult has offered them in order to cope with the world. They need support to make sense of a chaotic and imperfect world, and they will follow their blind and beligerant ignorance regardless of the inconsistency that is displayed. They show no faith in their God or 'religion', only fear...fear of damnation, fear of eternal suffering, fear of the living hell that exists in their minds...and fascinates them.
These people need faith...religion, but they are taking the long road going through Hell House to try and find it.