There is something fun about a horror movie that is this willing to go off in its own direction.
Synopsis
Follows 3 actresses who play themselves as they appear on a paranormal television show to investigate the exorcism of the Kaneda family.
Good Points
- The first half is actually really creepy, and Cult does a good job taking its time before things get completely ridiculous – the haunted house stuff, the strange footage, and the feeling that something is wrong all work pretty well, with a classic Japanese horror vibe where you are waiting for something bad to happen, and sometimes the waiting is worse than the actual scare.
- The reality TV setup is a really good idea I thought, and I liked the way the movie plays around with the idea of filming something terrifying for entertainment, which gives the movie a slightly uncomfortable feeling because you are basically watching the same thing the people in the film are watching.
- It is genuinely unpredictable, where it is constantly throwing in some pretty weird ideas, so just when you think you know what kind of movie you are watching, it decides to go in another direction.
- Neo is ridiculous, but I cannot pretend he is boring – this guy is completely insane – the hair, the glove, the attitude, the dramatic poses, and absolutely changes the tone of the movie, but he also gives it a personality.
- The effects are not exactly expensive-looking, but the movie has some memorable images, where the strange spirits, the rituals, and some of the possession scenes are so strange you won’t forget them.
- While Cult definitely borrows from other films, it also has its own identity, and at least it is trying something different instead of just following the same formula.
- The movie also knows some of what it is doing is ridiculous, so it has a bit of a “yes, we know this is completely crazy” attitude, which helps because otherwise some of the later moments would probably be impossible to take seriously.
Bad Points
- The tone change is massive here, and this is probably the biggest issue, because the movie starts as a creepy supernatural investigation, then Neo arrives and suddenly it feels like a completely different film.
- The story gets very messy near the end, where it introduces a lot of ideas and does not always explain them properly, and there are moments where I thought it had forgotten to answer some pretty important questions.
- While cheap effects are not always a bad thing, especially in horror, but there are a few moments where the visuals certainly are not good, and you can see exactly where the budget went and where it did not.
- The ending is frustrating, because I didn’t think it felt like a proper conclusion, more like it feels like the movie is preparing for something bigger that never arrives – leaving questions unanswered can be great, but Cult leaves a few too many things hanging.
- There is a genuinely strong horror movie hiding in here – the atmosphere, the ideas, and the first half are all really good, but the film gets distracted by its own craziness – it is still fun, but you can see the better movie it could have been.
Final Verdict on Cult
Cult is a weird one because I can completely understand why some people will hate it, but I also understand why others love it – the movie starts off as a creepy Japanese found-footage horror film, then suddenly decides it wants to be something much stranger, and Neo basically kicks the door open and changes the whole experience.
But Cult is the kind of movie you will remember – sometimes for the right reasons, sometimes because you are still trying to work out what on earth you just watched.
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