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Review by Daniel Lima  No one knew how to name a movie like Italians in the 1970’s. The Red Queen Kills Seven Times. Hey Amigo! A Toast to Your Death. Watch Me When I Kill. No matter how middling the movie, it was often accompanied by a distinct and evocative title that promised intrigue and danger. In that way, The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer is something of a spiritual successor. Unfortunately, it also shares something else with those earlier films: it does not deliver on that promise. John Magaro plays the titular writer, who has been working on his second book for years with no end in sight. His literary agent has become disinterested in him, his marriage is on the rocks, and he can do no more than lamely explain to anyone who will listen how his novel is about the last Neanderthal. It’s at this low point of his life that a stranger approaches him with an offer: write a story based on the stranger’s former life as a serial killer. When Magaro’s wife finds the stranger in her home, the two pretend he is a marriage counselor, setting up an interesting dynamic that does not ever pay off. The premise sounds like ample ground for some black comedy hijinks or the setup to a dark comparison between relationships between romantic partners and those formed by murderers and their victims. While there is a paltry attempt to do this, the film takes so long to set up this state of affairs that there’s little runway to make the most of the conceit. The Shallow Tale is never more fun than in its last third, as characters begin to grow suspicious of one another and flimsy plots begin to spiral out of control, but by that point, it is too little too late. The journey to get there sorely lacked the energy of the finale, and the best part of the movie is over as quickly as it began.  The three leads — Magaro, Britt Lower as his wife, and Steve Buscemi as the retired serial killer — all commit to their performances, and every laugh the film earns is more on their shoulders than on the limp material they are given. The comic rhythm and sensibility of the film never seem quite right, going from droll and dry to absurdist to meta and ironic at the drop of a hat. This lack of consistency gives the film an unevenness that feels less like “anything can happen” and more like “there is no coherent vision for what this story actually is.” Considering the uneven pace of the narrative as a whole, this appears to be the case.
It’s impossible to watch this and not think about the recently released Hit Man. That film is similarly a riff on mystery and crime stories that incorporates romance into genre thrills and vacillates in tone. Those are where the similarities end: that movie has a clear thesis, has a deliberate build in how absurd the comedy is, and knowingly wrings as much as it can from its premise. Of course, that is a film from Richard Linklater, an artist who has been making films for decades, whereas The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer is the English-language debut of a comparatively young filmmaker. Hopefully, Tolga Karacelik will learn from the missteps of this shallow tale going forward. The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which ran from June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 2.5/5
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Review by Adam Donato  Actors don't make movies; they make a living. Recently, Russell Crowe was asked about Dakota Johnson's comments about Sony and her experiences working on a Marvel superhero movie. Crowe, who had a role in the poorly received Thor: Love and Thunder and is going to star opposite Aaron Taylor Johnson in Sony's Kraven the Hunter, said: "If you're expecting this to be some kind of life-changing event, I just think you're here for the wrong reasons." His career has persisted, but he has yet to be the focal point of a hit film since the 2000s. He's had box office success and critical success, but never both at the same time. Even in Les Miserables, he's known to be the weak link of that cast. It's ironic that there's a Gladiator sequel coming out later this year, and it's primed to be a greater success than Crowe's last five films combined. This week sees the release of Crowe's latest leading role, The Exorcism. One might ask, "Didn't the Russell Crowe exorcist movie come out last year?" This is not Deja vu. Just over a year ago, theaters were surprisingly packed for Crowe in The Pope's Exorcist. Just not domestic theaters, as the film only covered its $18 million budget in the states, but worldwide pulled in an extra $56 million. To The Exorcism's credit, the concept of this film is more compelling than that of The Pope's Exorcist. A disgraced actor stars in a horror film, and his estranged daughter notices he's either slipping into his old destructive ways or becoming possessed. With all the conversation about the value of method acting, this story may hit home for some people. Crowe is not very good in the film and fails to generate any scares with his performance.  The supporting cast includes some familiar faces. Sam Worthington, who won his way back into some fans' hearts with his performance in Avatar: The Way of Water, is one of Crowe's co-stars here. He's there, but his character is entirely forgettable. Ryan Simpkins is the older sibling of famous child actor Ty Simpkins, who appeared in Crowe's The Nice Guys. While everyone is begging for a sequel to that gem, we're stuck with multiple Crowe exorcist movies. Simpkins's character forms a relationship on set with an artist played by Chloe Bailey, Halle Bailey's sister. Their relationship is cute and allows Simpkins an outlet as she struggles with her father's problems.
The director is the son of the man who played the priest in The Exorcist. One would hope the experience would rub off on the son, but this film is far from the likes of The Exorcist. None of the scares are really effective in the way the film wants them to be. The narrative is easily predictable, and the character's internal struggle is not compelling. The Exorcism thinks it's really cute sucking up to cinephiles by taking place on a movie set and having references to superior films. It's not worth your time at the theater. The Exorcism completes the dookie of a doubleheader of exorcism films from Crowe in the last two years. With the release of A Quiet Place: Day One on the horizon, it's hard to see this entry finding an audience for itself at the domestic box office. Maybe it will translate overseas like its predecessor, and hopefully, some quality is mistakenly discovered. Save this one for streaming if you're going to watch it at all. These days, Crowe's reason for making a film seems to be the paycheck and more power to him. It's a rough industry, especially for action heroes past their prime, but when it's all said and done, nobody is going to remember The Exorcism. The Exorcism hits theaters on June 21. Rating: 2/5 Review by Tatiana Miranda  The best way to describe Nicholas Colia's Griffin in Summer is Theater Camp meets Rushmore meets Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. The movie centers around the titular Griffin, a 14-year-old aspiring playwright who is a bit of a jaded writer. His latest work, Regrets of Autumn, is described by Griffin as Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? meets American Beauty and centers around the downfall of a marriage. It's heavy stuff for a 14-year-old, but as the movie progresses and we meet Griffin's miserable mother, portrayed by Melanie Lynskey, and learn about his increasingly absent father, it makes sense why he would choose to base his play on such a subject matter. Although Griffin's plays might be a bit depressing, the film is anything but that. After alienating himself from his peers and long-time collaborators, Griffin meets Brad, an attractive 20-something handyman and former performance artist from New York City. While it isn't instant infatuation, Griffin quickly begins to look up to Brad and his former life in New York and discovers more about his burgeoning sexuality as he develops a crush on Brad. While it's no controversial queer romance like Call Me by Your Name, it is more of a comedic and heartfelt coming-of-age that focuses on growing up as someone a little unordinary through both their sexuality and interests. While Griffin in Summer can be a bit campy at times, it is ultimately a funny and relatable look at discovering yourself as a teenager. Incredible performances bring the story to life, with Everett Blunck portraying a standoffish yet passionate Griffin. His usual creative partner, Kara, is effectively played by Abby Ryder Fortson, best known for her role in Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. Even Brad's over-the-top girlfriend, portrayed by Kathryn Newton, is a comedic scene-stealer. While each character seems to fall into specific tropes to service Griffin's growth, it doesn't feel inauthentic or one-dimensional. Even though the movie centers on Griffin, each character is unique and well-developed while not taking too much attention away from the titular character and his arc.  Because of Griffin's niche interest, his passion for his art differs greatly from his peers, who would rather spend the summer at parties or, for Kara, with her new boyfriend than spend hours practicing for an amateur play. While these secondary characters might just as easily have been played off as pawns to signal Griffin's loneliness and disconnect, instead, they also have their individual stories of growth and change. Lynskey's performance as Griffin's mom is, although understated, a great insight into what makes Griffin the way he is while also establishing her individuality as a character.
Although Griffin in Summer is not necessarily groundbreaking in terms of coming-of-age films, it is a wholesome and relatable story about growing up and not fitting in. Griffin's solace in his art and dreams about moving to New York is something that most young, queer creatives in suburbia can relate to, and Brad's setbacks as an artist are also familiar to those who have followed their passions into adulthood. Griffin in Summer premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which ran from June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 4/5 Review by Tatiana Miranda  Most recognizable from his leading role in Disney's Sky High, Michael Angarano has recently gained more notoriety for his roles in films such as Oppenheimer. Now, he stars in his sophomore film as director and writer, Sacramento. Co-written with Chris Smith, the movie follows Angarano's character, Ricky, as he grapples with his father's death and reminisces on past relationships. Alongside Angarano, the film stars Maya Erskine, Kristen Stewart, and Michael Cera as Ricky's old friend Glenn. While the movie might initially seem like a classic buddy road trip comedy, it attempts to tackle deeper subjects, such as fatherhood and relationships.
Sacramento opens with a meet-cute between Ricky and Erskine's character, Tallie. The film quickly shifts its focus away from them as we see Ricky in a rehab center following the death of his father. A know-it-all who tends to project his issues onto others, he finds himself visiting Glenn, who is hesitant about Ricky's reappearance and incredibly stressed about his impending fatherhood, which he tries to hide from Ricky. After an uncomfortable lunch together, Ricky lies and guilts Glenn into traveling from LA to Sacramento. By the end of the trip, the two have made amends and made strides in their respective romantic relationships. Like Angarano's directorial debut, Avenues, Sacramento is an awkward and understated emotional comedy. But Ricky's unlikable and untrustworthy personality, mixed with Glenn's uncomfortable and extreme behaviors, make the film too awkward for its own good. While the movie tries to show the nuances of the beginnings of fatherhood, it feels a bit cartoonish as we see Glenn have a mental breakdown due to the stress of becoming a first-time dad. Mirrored is the equally neurotic Ricky as he tries to make amends with those he ignored following his dad's death. Kristen Stewart also plays a similarly one-dimensional character as the stoic wife to Glenn. Every character acts a bit too outlandish for the audience to be able to empathize with them or understand their emotional state beyond quick gags. As a rare road trip comedy, Sacramento has the potential to be an interesting story about grieving a parent while also becoming one for the first time, but Ricky's loss is more of a driving force for the plot rather than a way to gain insight into the character's delay in becoming a father. In fact, not much is discussed when it comes to his dad or the relationship they shared, but instead, the act of his death is more what Ricky uses as an excuse for his behavior. With a film with so many different relationships, both on- and off-screen, hardly any of them feel like authentic and wholesome depictions. Glenn and his wife are opposites, and they are so comical that it makes it hard to picture them as a real, functional couple. Meanwhile, Ricky and Glenn's relationship is not given enough depth and chemistry to account for the years that they supposedly spent as close friends. Although Sacramento has its moments, such as the gorgeous cinematography and funny interactions between characters, it feels too distant to leave a lasting emotional impression. With a film as understated as this one, the flaws outweigh any potential merit the movie may have. Sacramento premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which ran June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 2/5 Review by Tatiana Miranda  For many, Mars might seem like just another adult animated movie, but for those familiar with the comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U'Know and their sketch comedy series of the same name, it's the latest and last collaboration of the group following the end of the series in 2011 and leader Trevor Moore's death in 2021. The group had been working on Mars since 2012 and shifted it from an originally live-action film to an animated one. Even with all of the changes over the years, Zach Cregger, one of the filmmakers and members of the troupe, ensures that the final film is what Moore had envisioned. Drawn in a crass and simple hand-drawn style, Mars isn't anything revolutionary when it comes to adult animation in terms of visuals. Even the film's humor, while entertaining, does pander to a specific audience, that audience being long-standing fans of the troupe. Inside jokes from the group's crowdfunding campaigns make an appearance, and the film makes understated yet topical commentary on the extremities of wealth and the boredom of billionaires like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. Yet, the film doesn't hold a lot of depth beyond being an homage to Moore and The Whitest Kids U'Know. Since most of the group's comedy experience comes from their sketch series, it makes sense that the movie feels more like a series of sketches rather than a full feature-length film. Between the over-the-top characters and the unreal situations they find themselves in, the movie isn't lacking in comedy and is one of the things that the movie excels at. Yet, out of all of the adult animated series and films out these days, Mars doesn't stand out as the plot, and some of the characters, such as the main one, Kyle Capshaw, voiced by Cregger, feel a bit one-dimensional, even when they try not to be.  The film opens as Capshaw decides to abandon his overbearing fiance and father-in-law's dentist practice to start a new life on Mars. Alongside him on Mars are an adult kidnapping survivor, a religious fanatic, and a teacher, along with billionaire Elron Branson, who organized the trip to colonize the planet. With a very caricature-like cast of characters, it would make sense for the film to lean into the absurdity similar to popular adult animations such as Rick and Morty and Smiling Friends. Yet, it attempts to give the characters arcs to mixed results. With Capshaw's crisis that landed him on Mars, a narrative arc would make sense as he attempts to return home, but any growth or personality given to the character is quickly interrupted by one of the film's many gags.
While Mars might not necessarily work as its own entity, it is a testament to the comedic style and fanbase that The Whitest Kids U'Know has spent so many years establishing. Even though it marks the end of the troupe's collaboration, it is a well-earned culmination of the group's humor and the evolution of the film since its inception in 2012. Mars premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which ran from June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 2.5/5
Review by Sean Boelman
You don’t often see a directorial debut with as star-studded of a cast as Boys Go to Jupiter, but what is even more surprising about Julian Glander’s animated feature is how idiosyncratic it is. Weird in all the best ways, Boys Go to Jupiter won’t work for everyone, but it’s impossible not to admire Glander’s unique style.
The film follows a teenage gig worker on a quest to earn $5,000 as his plans are derailed by otherworldly visitors and massive conspiracies. It’s hard to describe exactly what’s happening in Boys Go to Jupiter, not so much out of fear of spoilers but instead because describing its events without sounding like a lunatic is virtually impossible. Boys Go to Jupiter is very much a vibe-driven movie, but that’s not to say it’s light on story. In fact, the exact opposite could be argued. At a certain point, so much is happening that’s all so random and weird that you check out of trying to follow the story and instead just decide to embrace the ride. And at right around 90 minutes in length, the film is brief enough that its relentless quirkiness does not outstay its welcome. Glander’s characters also make spending time on this journey with them easy. On paper, the names and character designs seem totally absurd, and in some ways, they absolutely are. Still, these people and anthropomorphic beings feel in other ways like people you’d actually want to hang out with, which is the key to success in a hangout movie. 
However, as is the case with so many coming-of-age directorial debuts, one will be left wishing that Glander’s movie had a little more to say. It’s an exercise in style over substance, and while there could be something to be said about finding one’s own voice as a filmmaker through a story about finding oneself, part of that voice should be a unique perspective, and that’s what’s missing from Boys Go to Jupiter — at least in a thematic sense.
That being said, Glander’s approach to animated filmmaking is certainly very individualistic in an aesthetic sense. The 3D style is incredibly colorful and strikes a wonderful balance between rudimentary and imaginative. Although some might be put off by this peculiar animation style, which is entirely unlike anything you’ll see in mainstream animation, it’s very refreshing to see someone take such a distinctive approach. The other aspect of Boys Go to Jupiter that is likely to earn recognition is its voice cast. The central role is played by newcomer Jack Corbett, who is incredibly charming. However, the spotlight is frequently stolen from Corbett by the comedy A-listers in the supporting cast, including Elsie Fisher, Julio Torres, Sarah Sherman, Joe Pera, and more. Although none of their roles are particularly big, their presence is greatly welcome, and their scenes are among the most memorable in the film. Boys Go to Jupiter is an incredibly weird animated movie, but it seems tailor-made for a cult following. From its voice cast of comedians known for their own peculiarities to the quirky sense of humor and Glander’s distinctive animated style, this film is designed for an incredibly niche audience, but that core group will enjoy it beyond belief. Boys Go to Jupiter screened at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which runs June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 3.5/5
Review by Sean Boelman
Assel Aushakimova’s Bikechess has the makings of a sardonic satire that could spotlight a part of the world that doesn’t often get a platform in cinema. Unfortunately, despite the novelty of its perspective and the urgency of its message, Bikechess fails to connect as a satire, boring the audience rather than provoking their thought.
The film follows a Kazakh broadcast journalist working for a state-owned television station who is becoming increasingly disillusioned with the belittling puff pieces she is being asked to report on. At the same time, she juggles drama in her personal life, including her younger sister’s constant brushes with the authorities and an affair with her married cameraman. Aushakimova deserves a lot of respect for her bravery as a filmmaker. Making any movie about censorship, freedom of speech, and propaganda in a country like Kazakhstan, where opposing viewpoints are often prosecuted, is a feat in and of itself. When you add that Aushakimova’s satirical commentary is so unabashed, Bikechess is at least impressive as a work of political activism. Unfortunately, the film is only impressive on that level. It is meant to be incredibly satirical, but its humor isn’t all that funny. It pokes fun at the absurdity of state-run propaganda in occasionally amusing ways, but this satire peaks early. The opening scene, which gives the movie its name, hits the ground running but cannot maintain this narrative momentum through the rest of the runtime. 
One of Bikechess’s other prominent issues is that its characters feel underdeveloped. When the protagonist of a film is arguably the least interesting character, it’s a problem. Although Aushakimova is obviously most interested in the journalistic themes, the more intriguing storyline is that of the protagonist’s activist sister. After all, what would the journalism story matter if the journalist didn’t have something incendiary and urgent to cover?
Saltanat Nauruz’s performance in the lead role is solid for the dramatic portions of the movie, but she struggles with the comedic elements. The film's sense of humor is incredibly dry, and Nauruz almost feels too sincere for this aspect to work. The rest of the cast doesn’t make much of an impression in one direction or the other. Visually, Bikechess is almost disgustingly grey-looking. Although you can cut it a bit of slack because it’s obviously made on a very small budget, it’s in a weird grey area where it’s a bit too rough around the edges but also slightly too refined to work in a guerilla-esque sense. As a result, Bikechess looks (and feels) cheap but doesn't have the scrappy quality necessary to pull this aesthetic off. It would be impossible to watch Bikechess and not at least acknowledge the bravery that Assel Aushakimova has shown in creating such a damning condemnation of censorship and propaganda. However, one will wish that Aushakimova had crafted a more engaging film. It needed to be more exciting, funnier, or perhaps even just more focused. But in its current state, viewers will leave Bikechess feeling more disappointed about what it wasn’t than anything else. Bikechess screened at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which runs June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 2/5
Review by Sean Boelman
More often than not, interesting subject matter is the determining factor in the success of a documentary. However, in some instances, the filmmaker’s approach is so ineffective that it doesn’t matter how compelling its subject or message is — the movie simply isn’t engaging. This is the case with Simon Klose’s Hacking Hate, a film with all the elements to be great but fails to engage or sway the audience.
Hacking Hate follows Swedish journalist My Vingren, who works for Expo, the magazine founded by The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo writer Stieg Larsson. Her career, defined by daring and potentially dangerous investigations into the darkest corners of the internet, has earned her comparisons to the protagonist of that franchise. This documentary follows Vingren as she conducts an investigation into white supremacy circles on social media by diving deep undercover online using a fake profile. Although this investigation is intended to open viewers’ eyes to the ways in which extremists use these tools to recruit and radicalize individuals into their culture of hate, Vingren's observations aren’t especially revelatory. Instead, the movie offers a rudimentary, doom-and-gloom understanding of online culture. Stylistically, Simon Klose’s approach to telling this story is accomplished, if almost exactly what you would expect from a documentary of this nature. Its editing is very fast-paced, and the cinematography is very close. It’s clear that Klose wants the viewer to feel like they are part of this “action” happening in the cyber realm. 
However, an investigative doc — particularly one that’s only eighty-something minutes long — should easily be able to keep viewers engaged. Unfortunately, Klose seems overly fascinated with the minutiae of the investigation and its logistics instead of the results or its significance. While understanding how Vingren infiltrated these supremacist circles is interesting at first, it quickly becomes almost inaccessibly technical.
As a result, Hacking Hate doesn't feel particularly timely for a film that deals with such an incredibly urgent subject. Unfortunately, this is the consequence of making a movie about something that evolves as rapidly as social media and online discourse. The case studies used in the film, from Donald Trump’s removal from X to Elon Musk’s takeover of the platform, happened just a few years ago but already feel dated. The result is a cautionary tale about a platform that’s already imploded, eliminating any real feeling of stakes. Klose’s documentary also makes the mistake of giving the audience too many subjects to follow. The main focus is on Vingren, who is an interesting protagonist in this investigation. However, in trying to flesh out the stories of Anika Collier Navaroli and Imran Ahmed as full-on threads rather than simply interviewing them as experts, Klose causes the entire movie to feel unfocused and underdeveloped. The conversation that Hacking Hate attempts to spark about the vitriol of online culture is undoubtedly very important and needs to be had. That being said, Simon Klose’s documentary is not as conducive to this conversation as it may seem. It lacks the stakes, urgency, and focus to hammer home its point effectively. Hacking Hate screened at the 2024 Tribeca Festival, which runs June 5-16 in New York City. Rating: 2.5/5 Review by Camden Ferrell  For years, Annie Baker has been a name associated with her acclaimed work as a playwright, even winning a Pulitzer Prize in 2014 for The Flick. Her debut feature film as a writer and director had its premiere at the 2023 Telluride Film Festival. Janet Planet is a grounded yet often profound coming-of-age story that translates her sensibilities to screen well while serving as a showcase for her talented cast. In the early 90’s, Janet is an acupuncturist who is spending the summer in rural Massachusetts alongside her daughter Lacy. Throughout the summer, Janet brings three different people into their lives: her boyfriend, a friend, and the leader of a local theater group. Lacy spends the summer interacting with these individuals as she vies for her mother’s attention and as she explores childhood and her own imagination. This is a story that is right up Baker’s wheelhouse as a writer, and it’s the perfect backdrop for the kind of everyday stories she became successful telling. Baker’s script is superb and the best part of the movie. Her style of dialogue translates very well as a feature film, and it’s toeing a subtle line from start to finish. It is grounded enough to remain realistic and immersive, but it’s meticulously crafted enough to engage audiences and encourage thought and reflection. The movie never feels like it’s filler, and it never feels overwritten. It’s a delicate balance that Baker perfectly demonstrates in her film debut, and it’s hard to leave this movie not being utterly impressed with the themes and ideas she explores so naturally.  In addition to the writing, the movie boasts two stellar performances from Julianne Nicholson and Zoe Ziegler as Janet and Lacy, respectively. Their chemistry is stellar from the start. Nicholson captures an alluring and earthly aura that is imperative in defining her character and the relationships with the people in her life. Ziegler plays off of Nicholson in such an impressive manner for a young actress. She handles the material well and understands Baker’s sense of pacing that helps capture the process of growing up in such a unique way.
I think it’s disingenuous to call this a coming-of-age movie despite that being what it is. However, I don’t want to group it with other movies in that genre because this one doesn’t feel like it belongs with them. It’s an extremely subtle look at childhood, the borderline codependent attachments we form with our parents, and the slow and stumbly disillusionment with them. One of the only critiques I can make of the movie is that Baker’s use of her signature pregnant pauses can sometimes be too gratuitous for its own good, but those pauses are otherwise imperative to how this movie operates that you forgive the times it overstays its welcome. Janet Planet is a quiet and tender movie about a mother and daughter, their bond, and the forces and people at work in their lives one summer. Baker has showed that the medium of film is one that she can also conquer, and I sincerely hope we see a lot more from her going forward. Smartly written and wonderfully acted, this is a movie worth checking out. Janet Planet is in theaters June 21. Rating: 4/5 Review by Joseph Fayed  If you have ever heard the phrase "drinking the Kool-aid," you probably already know the fate of the People's Temple, led by Jim Jones. Over 900 died from poisoning in Jonestown, Guyana, making it the largest intentional loss of American citizens until 9/11. Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown is a three-part National Geographic docuseries that interviews survivors, both members of the cult and some concerned members of Congress and the media who were there that fateful day in 1978. Heart-pounding stories of survival are shared in the docuseries, which begins to lose a bit of its edge by the end of its run. On November 14th, 1978, Congressman Leo Ryan, along with a team of his staff members and reporters, flew to Guyana to visit Jonestown, the sect of the People's Temple founded by Jim Jones that had relocated from the United States several years prior. This visit came after a growing number of relatives of members of the People's Temple wrote to the Congressman, expressing how they had not been able to contact any of their loved ones in many months. A few days later, the group is allowed to visit Jonestown. Shortly after their arrival, several members tell Ryan they secretly want to leave. When this information gets leaked to Jones, it sets off a domino effect for something sinister he had planned should members try to deflect. Survivors who were both members and non-members recount how they were able to escape the nightmare that quickly unfolded. The docuseries is divided in the most reasonable way possible for content with just three episodes. By focusing on the beginning of the end, the day of, and the day after, it is phased out with an equal amount of coverage for how Jonestown fell apart. I'm sure there are years of stories leading up to the tragedy that deserve to be told and say more about who Jim Jones really was than these few survivors recall. But with that said, the documentary lays enough groundwork in the first episode to give you a definitive answer as to who Jones really was. The docuseries avoids being a flat-out character study of Jones but allows those interviewed to share their experiences with him and how their perceptions differed by the fateful day in 1978.  This docuseries is survivor-centric, with both members and non-members who were in Guyana making up nearly all of the talking heads. There are no cult experts or outsider perspectives shared here, which is for the best because hearing the red flags from survivors feels more damning than from someone who has only studied cults like this one. The interviews with the various survivors are edited together pretty well, recapping the natural flow of what occurred in those last few days. With some of them, you feel like a lot was left on the cutting room floor due to time constraints. One particular survivor, Leslie, is not featured until episode three, and she shares a largely overlooked story of her and about 15 other survivors fleeing Jonestown the morning of the massacre. It would have been interesting to hear more from her versus the retelling of the other escape involving the Congressman.
This being made by National Geographic, there are no obvious signs of poor directing, such as horribly acted reenactments or large amounts of B-roll. Archive footage of those who are deceased and that of The People's Temple live on, and thankfully for the viewer, plenty of it was preserved to paint a picture of what Jonestown appeared to be like from the outside as this Utopia. At the same time, the words of the survivors reveal it was anything but. The interviews are set up for the subject to speak directly to the camera, often in a close-up. It comes across as an interrogation at times. Still, when intercut with footage from 1978, the cinematography and camera angle remind you that this is a survivor speaking to us in the present. Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown depicts how mass murder came to be. This docuseries has an important distinction from previous ones I've seen where a title card at the end points out how this tragedy was long regarded as a mass suicide but is now seen as murder. This is largely because of how testimonies from that day have changed the narrative. Hearing some of those survivors recount their survival is chilling, but narratively speaking, the filmmakers tie it together for the most part. While some moments arguably deserve to be highlighted more, what and how it all went wrong is exactly what we still talk about and look out for in modern-day cults. Like similar series about cults in the present, there could easily be room for another episode about the aftermath of survival. Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown is now streaming on Hulu. All three episodes reviewed. Rating: 4/5 |