We first meet television personality and professional “deprogrammer and cult-buster” Dale Domazar (Ry Barrett) in the midst of a dramatic cult takedown, filmed live for his TV show. Unfortunately his macho intervention not only fails to prevent a human sacrifice, it leads directly to the mass suicide of pretty much everyone involved.
Years later, when tightly-wound control-freak realtor Kallie Jones (Liv Collins) has concerns about the wellness retreat into which she’s booked her mopey husband, she calls the washed-up Domazar for help. Could this be the chance for him to redeem himself? Or will this just lead to yet another facial bloodbath?
Director and co-writer Jesse Thomas Cook’s is a wonderfully broad, goofy parody of reality TV personalities, mindfulness apps and new age gurus. At its best whenever Barrett and Collins share the screen together, Cult Hero delivers shouting, gore, screaming, more gore, shouting again, hand guns, aviator shades, more shouting, a flamethrower, and gore.
This is a big pint of lager of a movie, and all the better for it.
Cult Hero played the Fantasia International Film Festival on 30 July.
Trailer:
Whitlock&Pope 