Watch One of Us For Free

How sad is this?

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

Now when i say "cult movie", i mean a literal cult movie, that is, a movie about cults. i found the depiction of the cult leader and his subjects to be very realistic and educational. i've had some experience deprogramming some of these type of people and let me tell you this movie gets the facts right. The leader does not come across as some raving lunatic, but rather as a friendly father figure or surrogate. Very well made movie with some great performances, particularly from the cult leader and the young women playing the cult members that have been indoctrinated.

When a friend goes missing, investigative reporter Mary (Christa B. Allen) springs into action and travels to Idyllwild, California and joins a cult she suspects her friend was a part of. The cult is run by Brent (Derek Smith) and has a bunch of young girls working there. Mary has to surrender her cell phone and ....this is just too painful to go on because you know the formula.This is a magical film where you know what happens before it does, except for that one thing. The actors were saving their ability for the next film and opted to phone it in on this one. This could have been a Lifetime, made for TV film, but it wasn't. It just looked that bad.Guide: No swearing. Implied sex. No nudity, Some bra/panties from behind.

This was a nice surprise for a late night TV fright flick. While One of Us is clearly a psychological horror movie at heart, it's not dedicated to making the cheesiest, campiest, kill-fest imaginable. In fact, it seems to be trying to do something different. Speaking of camp, the director really seemed to take pride in capturing the atmosphere of the idyllic mountain setting. I'm not sure of the techniques, but the outdoor naturally lit shots were gorgeous. They had me kind of convinced, or at least intrigued, by the promise of a retreat away from the stresses of modern society…and the psychology that might drive someone to let a charismatic creeper take the wheel. Of course creepy cults can't last, and these women in the woods have to fight to stay alive, and while this film might not please the slasher film purists, it offers a bit of a stylish spin on the late night psycho creep show.

For a PG-13 flick, it is very entertaining. It has the right amount of suspense and intrigue, coupled with minimal CGI special effects for the ultimate psychological thriller. It definitely had me hooked with the creep factor, as you will see in the dream sequences. The acting was well done and the film was refreshingly different from what is out there. You will not be disappointed.