According to Netflix, I had already watched this at least once but I remembered absolutely nothing about it...not even the storyline, so watching it this time was like watching it for the first time. And honestly, I was pleasantly surprised. It was more along the lines of a "horror/period piece" film - which made it doubly attractive for me - and very intriguing. There was a bit of bloodshed sprinkled (har har) throughout the film but by no means would I consider this a "gorror movie" (combination of gore/horror coined by yours truly). It was more along the lines of a supernatural thriller based on archaic England. Speaking only for myself, I loved the archaic English and the dress, so that was just an added bonus to a film that...mehhh...probably set in modern times, wouldn't have been nearly as interesting. The setting, the archaic language, etc, made this more intriguing to me, much like _The Witch_ did. (Another great horror/period piece film, IMO.) There were, understandably, those moments when you caught yourself thinking, _"Why don't they just do this or that?"_ or _"How could....?"_ etc etc but in those rare scenes, you just have to disengage your brain and let it be an entertainment form, not something that necessarily has to make sense. (Example: If the land they were living on was so "scorched" and toxic, why didn't they just move to another part of that island where everything was so obviously still lush, green, and abundant...like the forest that "Thomas" escaped through? Duh...) In spite of those rare moments in the film, however, this was still a very enjoyable film. The closing scene didn't make a whole lot of sense (to me) but I guess maybe it was their way of wrapping up such a supernatural story. Meh, wasn't my favorite part but anyways... Still a good story overall and definitely worth watching if you like the supernatural type stuff. For those wanting a lot of wanton violence and gore, this will probably not be your cup of tea but I enjoyed it overall.

***Mysterious first half devolves into muddled half-baked horror cheese***

A man in 1905 Wales (Dan Stevens) goes undercover as a member of a weirdo cult to save his captive sister on an isolated island.

"Apostle" (2018) has a similar plot to “The Wicker Man” (1973/2006) and a setting akin to “The Village” (2004) and “The Ritual” (2017), but it’s the least of these.

The first half is a decent set-up; a little dull, but nice and mysterious with a fantastic setting and village set. Unfortunately, the second half devolves into half-baked horror cheese with a couple of random torture scenes to supposedly keep things "exciting."

I was shocked at how bad the second half was -- bad flow, no finesse, ill-conceived, lack of consistency, too ambiguous -- just lousy wannabe-horror filmmaking. It’s like the director needed 20 more minutes to properly tell the story, but was pressured to keep the movie as close to 2 hours as he could and so clumsily forced the footage in the second half together.

Nevertheless, the movie's provocative upon reflection, particularly its commentary on human-made hybrid religions and the potential for corruption and abuse thereof. Think Jeroboam's syncretic religion when the northern kingdom of Israel broke from Judah; he concocted two golden calf idols and appointed illegitimate "priests." It was influenced by Judaism and featured some of its trappings, but left out the most important part (God).

The film runs 2 hours, 10 minutes and was shot in Wales.

GRADE: C- (First half B- / Second half D-)

This movie is anti-Christian. Look at the inverted cross in the name itself. It has an agenda - it's not just a movie. Do not watch it, do not let your close ones watch it either.

There are many more other good horror flicks out there who can do it without demonising religion (and not any or all religion, it specifically targets Christians).

I think far too many movies that go for a similar vibe to _Apostle_ aren't willing to take that very important step into actually embracing your supernatural/fantasy/gothic elements. _Apostle_ on the other hand, goes full hog saying "fuck that", and in turn I'm saying "Please sir, may I have some more."

_Final rating:★★★½ - I really liked it. Would strongly recommend you give it your time._