The Endless
3.5/4
Starring: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, Tate Ellington, Callie Hernandez
Not Rated (probable PG-13 for Language, Drug Content and Brief Violent Images)
"The Endless" belongs firmly in the mindfuck genre. This is a movie that will get stuck in your head and under your skin. It's maddening, scary, and thought provoking. It is also one of the best films of the year.
Ten years ago, brothers Justin (Benson) and Aaron (Moorhead) escaped from a UFO death cult. Now they're working as cleaning guys. Justin has left the cult behind him and is coping well enough. Aaron isn't as successful. He misses the positivity and sense of community. He also believes that it would be better to live at the commune than be in the crappy life of a cleaner with no money and in constant debt. To appease him and show him that life in the cult isn't as rosy as he remembers, Justin agrees to take him back to the commune for a day. The results aren't what either of them anticipate.
This is a movie where it's best to go in blind. Knowing the central gimmick won't necessarily spoil the movie for you, but a lot of the fun comes from discovering things for yourself. I will try to avoid discussing too much of the plot, but if I sound vague, it's because I want to avoid spoilers.
"The Endless" is like a piece of music. It starts with one melody, then adds another, and another, and another. Filmmakers Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead are careful to follow the rules they have established, and the film follows its set internal logic. If there's any flaw in this screenplay, it's that occasionally the characters are ahead of the audience. It's fine when a supporting character knows what's going on and explains it, but when the stand-in for ourselves knows more than we do, it's a little frustrating.
The acting is, by design, low key. Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead create a believable older/younger brother relationship. Justin is older, so he's used to telling Aaron what to do. Justin doesn't mean any harm; he just thinks he knows better. And while Aaron loves his brother, he's still resentful and wants to go his own way. Also worth mentioning is Tate Ellington, who plays Hal the cult leader. He's both charismatic and creepy. It's a difficult line to balance, but the actor does an excellent job.
Say what you want, but you can't claim that this film isn't the vision of Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. Benson wrote the screenplay while Moorhead did the camerawork, and they both co-directed and co-produced it. They also played the two lead characters. That's impressive in its own right, but the fact that this movie is really good is all the better. Based on this movie, these two have real talent. It's one of those movies that will get a filmmaker (or filmmakers in this case) noticed, and eager to see what they're doing next.
This is by no means a perfect movie. There were definitely times when I was frustrated with trying to figure out what was going on. Another run through the computer to smooth out the rough edges might have edged it up to a 4/4. But I liked the intellectual challenge. The characters are appealing, the story is unpredictable, and while the suspense is mostly of the understated variety, there is definitely a lot of tension in this movie. It's a movie that you'll want to watch with friends and talk about after, because there are some questions that still aren't answered at the end.
I think.
Starring: Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, Tate Ellington, Callie Hernandez
Not Rated (probable PG-13 for Language, Drug Content and Brief Violent Images)
"The Endless" belongs firmly in the mindfuck genre. This is a movie that will get stuck in your head and under your skin. It's maddening, scary, and thought provoking. It is also one of the best films of the year.
Ten years ago, brothers Justin (Benson) and Aaron (Moorhead) escaped from a UFO death cult. Now they're working as cleaning guys. Justin has left the cult behind him and is coping well enough. Aaron isn't as successful. He misses the positivity and sense of community. He also believes that it would be better to live at the commune than be in the crappy life of a cleaner with no money and in constant debt. To appease him and show him that life in the cult isn't as rosy as he remembers, Justin agrees to take him back to the commune for a day. The results aren't what either of them anticipate.
This is a movie where it's best to go in blind. Knowing the central gimmick won't necessarily spoil the movie for you, but a lot of the fun comes from discovering things for yourself. I will try to avoid discussing too much of the plot, but if I sound vague, it's because I want to avoid spoilers.
"The Endless" is like a piece of music. It starts with one melody, then adds another, and another, and another. Filmmakers Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead are careful to follow the rules they have established, and the film follows its set internal logic. If there's any flaw in this screenplay, it's that occasionally the characters are ahead of the audience. It's fine when a supporting character knows what's going on and explains it, but when the stand-in for ourselves knows more than we do, it's a little frustrating.
The acting is, by design, low key. Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead create a believable older/younger brother relationship. Justin is older, so he's used to telling Aaron what to do. Justin doesn't mean any harm; he just thinks he knows better. And while Aaron loves his brother, he's still resentful and wants to go his own way. Also worth mentioning is Tate Ellington, who plays Hal the cult leader. He's both charismatic and creepy. It's a difficult line to balance, but the actor does an excellent job.
Say what you want, but you can't claim that this film isn't the vision of Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. Benson wrote the screenplay while Moorhead did the camerawork, and they both co-directed and co-produced it. They also played the two lead characters. That's impressive in its own right, but the fact that this movie is really good is all the better. Based on this movie, these two have real talent. It's one of those movies that will get a filmmaker (or filmmakers in this case) noticed, and eager to see what they're doing next.
This is by no means a perfect movie. There were definitely times when I was frustrated with trying to figure out what was going on. Another run through the computer to smooth out the rough edges might have edged it up to a 4/4. But I liked the intellectual challenge. The characters are appealing, the story is unpredictable, and while the suspense is mostly of the understated variety, there is definitely a lot of tension in this movie. It's a movie that you'll want to watch with friends and talk about after, because there are some questions that still aren't answered at the end.
I think.
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