Worth: $17.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Liv Collins, Ry Barrett, Tony Burgess, Justin Bott, Jessica Vano
Intro:
… wonderfully entertaining and very funny.
This Canadian horror-comedy has heart. At the centre of the story are real estate agent Kallie Jones (Liv Collins) and her stereotypically hen-pecked husband Brad (Justin Bott). The ever-chattering, nasal-voiced Kallie is just too much, especially for Brad, who’s so depressed he’s practically comatose.
In an attempt to revive their marriage, control freak Kallie decides to push Brad into Hope Acres, a wellness centre and “safe space for self-awareness”, run by resident guru Master Jagori (Tony Burgess).
Of course, Hope Acres isn’t what it seems, and Kallie will soon need the services of Dale Domazar (Ry Barrett). When Kallie calls Domazar, he’s living in a squalid, dilapidated caravan, trying to claw his way into a comeback. He was once a reality TV star, a cult buster and deprogrammer, whose show was cancelled after he raided a cult and things went terribly – and gruesomely – wrong.
Cancel culture, reality TV, the wellness industry and even real estate are all targets for satire in Cult Hero. The cinematography and sets are impressive, transcending the low budget. Storytelling and character are at the fore, and the casting is spot-on.
Director Jesse Thomas Cook concocted this story with two of the leads, Liv Collins and Tony Burgess. As Kallie, Collins is manic fun, while Burgess is superb as the guru Master Jagori, hiding an evil purpose under his new age guise.
While the premise may be on the silly side, there are tender moments, such as when Kallie goes into self-reflective mode. These scenes are seamlessly woven into the silliness and fun, giving Cult Hero unexpected poignancy.
Cult Hero is wonderfully entertaining and very funny. On the Richter scale of gore, it’s roughly a 4.5 – almost enough to satisfy splatter fans but not so much as to turn off the general viewer.
