The Commune (2009)

I added The Commune to my queue after its director (a friend in the Netflix reviewer community) announced its release; it finally reached me (because I shove Very Long Wait titles to the top of my queue to encourage delivery), and I just finished watching it. The Commune is clearly an independent film, but in the best meanings of the term. First, it has a low budget, but does wonders within its bounds; in fact, the artistic and intellectual capital of the film's creators far outweigh the impact of the physical set and materials. Second, it has no-name actors, but the five main characters do quite well (esp. the star and the two creepy ones). Third, it is no simple task to conjure a believable "syncretistic neo-pagan cult"; you can't just make stuff up. As one who has seen the gaslighting and groupthink of us-versus-them "insider groups" in the real world, I'd say The Commune's director does an admirable job of creating this little patch of hell on earth. Fourth, combined with the unforeseen twist at the end, I thought events would reach a set of consequences that only turned out worse than I suspected. Yikes! Fifth, I really liked the soundtrack, esp. the closing credits tune. Sixth, and coming full circle back to the first point, the director's art and set design was eclectic and colorful, which in turn really set the scene throughout the film. My chief complaints are just two: First, enjoyable as the soundtrack was, I think blending it with creaky, otherworldly sounds only distracted from the atmospheric chill we tend to expect throughout a thriller feature film. Second, hearing the dialog was not always easy (even after turning up the volume), nor was understanding certain characters' actions. (What was up with Puck?) Anyway, the ending will get you -- and stick with you. Enjoy! 4 stars. (7-19-2016)