'The Leader' Review: Tim Blake Nelson's Disturbing Portrayal of Heaven's Gate Cult Leader
By
Owen Gleiberman
Front-window bakery material. Catches the eye, delivers the goods.
Summary
A review of Michael Gallagher's film "The Leader," which dramatizes the Heaven's Gate cult and its leader Marshall Applewhite. The review explores how the film captures the disturbing dynamics of cult life, the psychology of followers, and the manipulative nature of cult leaders. It compares the film favorably to "Martha Marcy May Marlene" as a potent drama about life inside a cult, while analyzing Tim Blake Nelson's creepy performance as the cult leader.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledIf you look at the history of cults, especially the ones that began to flourish in America in the 1970s... you'll see that almost every cult has two things in common. They're led by snake-oil gurus who end up sucking the wealth out of their followers. And more often than not, the leaders, who set themselves up as deities... use the followers for sexual favors.
Michael Gallagher's creepy and disturbing Heaven's Gate movie is the most potent drama about life inside a cult since 'Martha Marcy May Marlene.'
Part of what's disturbing about 'The Leader'...
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