The Endless Review

A few nights ago I watched the 2017 independent sci-fi horror film "The Endless" directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead who also star in it. The film follows two brothers as they return to a UFO death cult that they escaped 10 years earlier after they receive a disturbing video message. This is one of the best independent films I have ever seen. The tone of the movie is on point as well as the acting and cinematography. It has a great feel of mystery as well as bewilderment. The story and character development is also very good. After only 10 minutes into the movie you know who each brother is and their separate motivations. I'll dive into the specifics later but the only thing I found disappointing about this movie was parts of the ending. Overall It was a really great film. Lets go a little deeper into the aspects of the movie.

First off, the acting in this film was really good for an indie film! Surprisingly the directors also stay in the movie as the two main characters and do a brilliant job. The side characters also are cast really well the best in my opinion being the guy who played Hal, the "leader" of this sort of commune that the brothers return to.

The the first half of this film has a great sense of existential dread and mystery. As the characters dive deeper into the mysteries that they discover things get even more and more confusing. One scene that really stood out to me as a great display of this films scope of horror was "the struggle" tug of rope scene. The Endless' s category of horror is something called "cosmic horror" which is very difficult to capture on film. This type of horror deviates from monsters and gore but instead terrifies the audience by showing them how insanely big and vastly complex the universe is in comparison to our short and insignificant human lives. The monster in this film is never seen and thus terrifies us through its mystery and unmatched power to bend reality to its will. My only problem with the film is the part where you find out what is going on. As soon as we learn what is happening, in my opinion, the suspense and fear goes away and just turns into a sci fi movie. As soon as you understand the threat it no longer seems like something unstoppable and beyond us.

I think the endless was a great film and a great display of good cosmic horror. Great story telling, a great new idea, great acting and directing! I recommend you go see it for yourself!