the audience applauded

Sorry, this movie sucks

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Through the years, I've become a huge fan of Ellen Page and I must admit that this was the sole reason I wanted to see this film. But ultimately, this film was a real bummer.Page's acting is superb of course, along with some other actors. But throughout this movie, each genuine tension build-up seems to accumulate in an anticlimax. The movie starts gripping, but then all of a sudden some highly implausible elements are added to the equation, resulting in disappointment and even irritation.For instance, when Sherry's mother finds her and takes her with her, all of a sudden *she's* the one who wants to stay, while Sherry wants to leave. The way in which Sherry's mother turns into an avid fan just overnight is some kind of 15-year-old story-writing that is a mere insult to the viewer. The scene where Sherry and here mother suddenly start some kind of 'streetdance' along the road is not some kind of comic relief, neither does it have some kind of strange 'symbolism', it's just plain silly.Moreover, plot elements are just dipped into this movie as if it were a great pan of soup. The one minute, Nancy is alive and well, the other minute, she's dead in the pit without any further explanation. Harry, who has become more and more sadistic and manipulative, just stares blankly at Sherry and Mad Ax as they leave with the van, giving him more than enough time to intervene. It seems that the only person with consistency in her character is Sherry. However, it must be said that some genuine tension is present, and the whole concept of a semi-cult leader intimidating his followers is convincing.This movie is the equivalent of trying to sleep while your neighbors are fighting. Every time when the noise fades and you *just* feel comfortable enough to go back to sleep, the noise suddenly comes back.If it weren't for the good acting (the lead actors definitely 'rescued' this film) and the great music, I'd say that this movie is an all-out slap in the face for anybody who expects a decent indie-movie.

What can I say about this? Nothing about it is inherently bad (well okay, most of the acting is, but aside from that very obvious fact); it's mostly just a very plodding even boring film of often silly, predictable nothingness. You have your standard stereotypes everywhere, but none of the characters are in any way likable, which in itself doesn't necessarily cause me a problem and maybe this is just the type of film where no one needs to be liked, but either way. It even fails to explore the nature of a cult more deeply (or even at all), which was a wasted opportunity.One last thing, I've seen a few mentions of this being realistic. My a**e is it realistic! People seem to think that if a film's made on a low budget with no special effects and bad acting that it's realistic. Please stop mistaking hard to watch with realism.

After two years of trying to find the movie, I finally purchased it for 18.99 on ebay. Right when I received the package, I put it in my DVD player. It was worth the wait.First to note, the movie is low budget and you can tell from the poor lighting. But, it kind of added to this film. The film was very dark and gritty as it portrayed a cult that started as a party and ended as manipulation. I did notice quite a few plot holes such as how did Sherry's mother find Sherry when Sherry was over a thousand miles away. But other than that I applaud Alison Murray's efforts in this film as we laughed and cried with the lead character played by the always fantastic, Ellen Page.It was after Ellen's performance in Hard Candy that made me want to follow her and it is quite obvious that she'll have a fantastic career ahead of her.There is so much to say about this film. I loved the score and thought it was perfect for the film. It was very well placed and enjoyable. I loved how the actors would kind of dance to strange situations such as Sherry's mom would try to get Sherry in her car and Sherry wanted to get away from her. It was almost liked they did a tango. It was beautiful to me. What I also enjoyed about the movie was it was very unpredictable. Early in a movie you see a kid get nonchalantly thrown into a dumpster to get some food and he ends up hitting his head against a sharp object. There was no music to narrate the situation for you so it kept me off guard. I don't know what it is about indy films but they always appeal to me. I love the experimentation of the film.So all in all, you'll probably not be able to find this movie for rent and will most likely have to take the chance and purchase the film. It was very hard to find and ebay or Amazon is the only way you'll be able to find it. This movie reminded me a little of Firecracker, House of Sand and Fog, and 11:14. Mouth to Mouth is bizarre and is really "out there" so you need to watch it with an open mind.P.S: Congraduations to Ms. Page for her Oscar nomination and I'm sure she won't let the instant fame get to her head and she'll continue to pick original and great scripts.

When I first saw the preview for this film, it looked like a trippy indie film with a great soundtrack. I decided to give it a chance and bought it. It just came in today and I have to say, it is not what I expected, but better.This film is not about some rebel girl who runs away from home and has insane adventures. This is a movie about a girl who is desperately trying to become a part of something and the mother who follows her into a dangerous cult. It has so much more depth than I expected. The movie's hero is clearly Bat from beginning to end. However, other characters who the viewer does not expect become heroes as well. The movie shows a very scary and a very real descent into the lifestyle of a cult. The characters are unique and are uniquely duped into this life.The acting in it is phenomenal. Ellen Page, who we now know as Juno, shows another side of herself as the resilient Bat. The character shows real strength in the face of confusion.This movie entices and rattles the viewer. It dares to ask the question, What is a perfect world?