A Sacrifice
A Sacrifice
The sluggish first two-thirds of the short story “A Sacrifice” is even more dominant but offers no new information to the audiences and only what they have seen several times before. No one can even say that it is horrible, it is instead a typical boring film in which you gradually forget the name of the film while watching it. However, apparently, it ascertains to change the gear and gets a hundred times worse in the last act which goes from dullness to sheer mindless insanity, far beyond the level of plot progression that will ever satisfy even the most dedicated fans of the story’s arc. Although perhaps by the time it opts to go completely off the rails there will not be many such consumers left.
Social psychologist Ben Monroe (Eric Bana) moves to Berlin following divorce from his wife and decides to work on his next book, this one about groupthink: both its perils and the reasons for its alluring appeal. Among other things he examines for his work, he will be given access to a site where a mass suicide has occurred, and which has a noted pattern that links it to a cult prevalent in the area. There she meets Nina (Sylvia Hoeks) who is the police officer heading the case. Concurrently, Mazzy, (Sadie Sink) his 16 year old daughter also reaches Berlin to live with him. It is during this particular point in time while trying to reconnect with her that he comes to the realization that these stressors aggravate after having romantic relations with Nina.
When Mazugay arrives at the novelty building, she comes across a nice man called Martin (Jonas Dassler) who aids her in figuring out the trains and even expresses his intentions of wanting to meet her again. Talking about working with an environmental NGO, he asks her for a meeting which she decides to mark on her calendar. Hilda (Sophie Roos) is the head of the group and is an interesting woman who quite impresses Mazzy in her general outlook. In a way, a little more pleasantly acquainted with Martin, who has the same kind of an infatuation with Mazzy which Mazzy’s father detested, and the precious group nurturing her has started to topple her father and it shows that she has surrendered to the very circle her father has been trying to escape. What’s more, the above mentioned cultism has never ceased propagandizing the decay and decay and replacement of the society’s wrong doings demanding ‘sacrifices’.
There are films made over decades trying to invade the already complex understanding of the existent evil of cults and how they are able to, ever so slowly, insidiously bury into the minds and psyche of the weak Yakuza Barristers: Judgment (2010), Ticket to Heaven (1981), Split Image (1982), ‘Faults’. Such films did take the subject into consideration but were careful not to make if it a periphery or “exploiting the concept” type situation. On the other hand, “A Sacrifice” seems to have no desire in attempting to delve into the psychological factors that cause individuals to seek out such ideologies. Having made her feature narrative film debut, Scott uses an ordinary approach to the story with the action taking place of London having assembled completely dismal and unenthusiastic actors, which as usual, has some relevance in attempting to create interest in the poorly scripted film.
Then there’s this section which is the last and this is where the story becomes rather strange. Not that I mean to suggest that it will be the most shocking of the readers that plotlines relating to Ben’s investigation or Mazzy’s flirtations with Martin and his friends will at some point be integrated. Still, my bet is most people will not expect the degree of daftness and contrivances that are required to tie up the three plot lines; the script quite frankly, no longer puts any serious attempts it has had to put across to the audience this childhood story and decides to use simple chase. I have not read the book that Hogg wrote, this is why I cannot say anything about Scott, does he stick to the book, or does he do something different? But if the answer is the latter then he can at most take comfort in the fact that the title will not change does the aim of the work and to eliminate the occasion to unmask herself before them and his works.
Watching “A Sacrifice” is like sitting through some extended episode of lowbrow cop shows that are completed in so many subplots that it is safe to say, two seasons ahead. And because of that, most people ending up watching it cannot be too much excited about the movie. Not even the final sequences, where there is an attempt to entertain through humor and even sheer stupidity, can be enjoyable for a split second. If there is any such movie which can most definitely be rated as a side show while doing other things such as course folding, it has to be this one.
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- Genre: Drama, Mystery
- Country: united states
- Director: Jordan Scott
- Cast: Eric Bana, Sadie Sink, Sylvia Hoeks
