Exile (2014)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Admirable film.

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

There's a lot that can be said about this film. It's not great, and definitely not without flaws - in some cases, you can poke a hole big enough to sink a small boat. But this is one of the few films that I can honestly say, by the end, I was left reveling in what the filmmakers got RIGHT, that what flaws were noticeable melted into back of my mind. If you want an indie low-budget sci-fi film that doesn't follow the mold, give it a shot. This has the makings of a cult classic. It pays homage to Cronenberg and Lovecraft - not to oversell it, but it's weird and not soon forgettable. You've come this far, so hit the play button.

This ultra-low budget sci-fi horror has a lot of originality put into it and is experimental in the extreme, creating its own world in a very basic environment. Along with this the film leaves a lot of blanks for the audience to fill in about the state of the world and what caused it, but that all works to its credit.One gripe viewers could have is with the editing as it comes across as sloppy and jarring, although this might have been by design, but in either case it takes away from the viewing experience. Also the story, while original, lacks focus and it is easy to get lost in all that is happening. The film also takes very little time to pause and let the audience get to know its characters and so they feel a bit disconnected.Overall this is a film with a lot of good ideas and I hope the writer/director gets to go onto more things as they clearly have talent. With more money and scope this film could have been something akin to District 9, as it is there is a little too much confusion and limitations to be truly great, but it certainly has a lot of potential and for what it lacks it makes up for in originality.

After seeing the low score and reading the scant number of reviews about this flick, I have to conclude that most simply didn't get it. The world hasn't been taken over by an alien invasion - just one remote outpost has been taken over by a single alien. The community of Sunderland was likely an apocalyptic survivalist sect, in self-imposed isolation - hence the religious overtones of Angel's "teachings" (beginning with calling itself "Angel"), why outsiders don't find it too strange that they've been seeing less of these folks, and why it was a perfect place for this sort of alien invasion.The bizarre life cycle of the alien apparently requires nearly a decade of gestation inside its host - the film occurs at the end of this period for the first adults to be "blessed" by the psychic, parasitic organism, at which point they have to plant their heads in the garden, to produce the next vegetative part of this life cycle. What happens after that remains unknown. The young characters in this film would have been around 4-6 years old when their parents were either "blessed," or killed. Older siblings have been either blessed, killed, or fallen.Why the Fallen aren't killed is a bit of a mystery, except that the one adult who wasn't "blessed" (but wants to be) is the only person allowed outside of the compound, to obtain supplies. He's getting old enough that he might need replacement. The "blessed" wouldn't pass as normal outside the compound.Another weird thing to ponder is why it seems important to the "angel" to teach the kids math and genetics (along with fealty to the Angel, and not joining "the worm and the slit" - a primitive form of abstinence is the only thing these kids have been taught about sex). Since the parasite apparently acquires knowledge from the host, perhaps this gives the next generation a leg up. Teaching in the womb?There's a lot more going on in this flick than you're likely to get in one viewing.

An exploration of Western boredom, religion, drugs, and freedom.There is an alien that attempts to make people conform via ritual, there is crime and fitting but arbitrary punishment, and there is exile and death all set in almost post-apocalyptic desert ruination. A little gross, but not too gross. The characters are as unreal as the place and just as disturbing, but they are all honest to the point of hurting through their interpellation, ignorance, and resulting quirks.No tropes or overwritten moments in this one - I never knew what was going to happen next. It's not fun or pretty, but it's obvious that there was a real thinking human who made the movie.