A SACRIFICE -- Anatomy of a Cult

Review by Joseph Fayed

Don't you hate it when your work follows you home? A Sacrifice is a mystery thriller that follows an extreme example of that. This German-American production is action-packed, but its investigation into a new-age cult loses its footing in the latter half when it becomes nothing more than your typical search-and-rescue mission story. 

Ben Monroe (Eric Bana) is an American social psychologist on assignment in Germany. Ben investigates a series of unusual deaths that appear to be linked to a new-age cult. Aided by Nina (Sylvia Hoeks), he tries to get closer to the root cause. In the meantime, his teenage daughter Mazzy (Sadie Sink) arrives to spend time with her dad. Mazzy's parents have separated, and while father and daughter haven't been able to deal with that yet, that soon becomes the least of their worries. Martin (Jonas Dassler) befriends Mazzie, and as the two hit it off, it appears Martin may be one of the missing links to Ben's case. Ben's investigation and Martin's own agenda create life-or-death consequences for everyone involved. 

Lines such as "We are what we create" echo throughout the film and the psychology behind it. It is clear how this was the intended premise behind the film, which in turn was adapted from the novel Tokyo by Nicholas Hogg. Changing the setting and characters' names doesn't make it stand out from any other "foreigner in Europe" stories. Changing those details also doesn't show how this enigmatic cult came to be. The lack of depth and understanding of this cult, which acts as the primary antagonist here, is jarring because how vague the film is trying to be isn't executed very well due to the lack of suspense or mystery that leads to the conclusion. ​

If an academic perspective on cults is too boring for you, then you may appreciate the second act pivot towards kidnapping, murder, and suicide. One positive note is that the film never becomes dull, even if the story behind it is poorly told. There is never too long of a gap where something messed up doesn't happen to one of our four leads. Most of the plot points can be seen coming from a mile away, which makes their reveal unintentionally hilarious. For example, Nina receives a phone call with crucial information she must keep secret. Before that scene, her personality was extremely dry in all of her scenes, so it was funny to see a turnaround to make her more relevant somehow. 

Eric Bana has entered the mid-50s Liam Neeson dad era of his career. Australia must be so proud. His performance here is simply okay, but you definitely can tell which parts of the script he was comfortable acting. It's not the B-movie action flick jargon, but to his credit, he also doesn't overact his way through those scenes. Sadie Sink plays a bitchy teenager, and Sylvia Hoeks saves her energy until it is needed. Both were unremarkable but passable in their roles. Jonas Dassler is the one who got to display the most range because of how his character is written. He has a certain sad boy aura that European cinema tends to admire, so I expect him to appear in some Mubi original in the future if the right director/writer is willing to give him a chance. 

A Sacrifice is pretty mindless. Everything will be laid out in front of you, except for the whole cult aspect. But when you see glimpses of how bizarre a cult like that truly is, then at least you will be slightly more sympathetic towards our protagonists. Getting in and out of a cult is not as cut and dry as the film will make you believe, but I'm certain this fictional take on one will inspire the next wave of middle-aged dads to rescue their daughters in Western European countries. ​

A Sacrifice hits theaters on June 28.

Rating: 2/5