Apostle, written and directed by Gareth Evans 7 out of 10

Apostle, written and directed by Gareth Evans
7 out of 10


The Apostle is a wondrous motion picture, with a phenomenal Robert Duvall in the leading role, a performance for which he was nominated for an Academy Award that he deserved to win, even if tied with the actual winner.

Alas, Apostle is not at the same level.
Not if you listen to me anyway.

For otherwise critics have not been completely unfavorable towards this drama.
The Metascore stands at 62.

Not overwhelming, but we could say decent.
Which the film may very well be, if you come with lower expectations.

Indeed, some positive psychologists argues that one rule of well being is to:

Lower your expectations 

The other element that stood in the way of enjoying this horror feature - or at least finding some entertainment- for yours truly was the acting of Dan Stevens.
This artist has been very good in Downton Abbey, where he seemed natural, at ease in the role of the heir of that grandiose estate.

I think I have read somewhere that they had to kill his character in the series because Dan Stevens had wanted to move on to another opportunity.
For this viewer, he did not seem in his element when playing Thomas Richardson, the hero of the motion picture.
The Prophet Malcolm, although the villain of the fantasy, benefits from a much better performance rendered by Michael Sheen, who is granted, a more experienced actor.

Thomas Richardson tries to save his sister from the hands of a villainous cult, led by the Profet Malcolm.
For this, the protagonist has to work under cover, so to say.

And discovers gruesome, terrible secrets, people are tortured and killed.
It reminded me of the infamous case of a mass suicide that took place in Guyana.
This heinous act is mentioned in the quintessential Influence by the classic Robert Cialdini.

Why have so many killed themselves?
There have been principles of Influence at play.

One is reciprocity, the insane guru has made favors and cult members have paid that back by...killing themselves.

Another is consensus, we tend to follow the lead of others in unfamiliar situations.
And the fact that they were isolated in the forests of Guyana made for an environment that couldn't have been any more eccentric.

I recommend you read Influence and forget about Apostle.
Or if it is a film with one prophet you want to see, then you are much better off with:

The Prophet