ACOLYTES

Australia, 2008, 90 minutes, Colour.
Joel Edgerton, Holly Baldwin, Michael Dorman, Sue Dwyer, Sebastian Gregory, Joshua Payne, Anthony Phelan, Belinda McCLory.
Directed by Jon Hewitt.

Acolytes is a teen slasher/thriller. It has attractive locations, the countryside of Queensland. However, some of the performances are rather stolid.

The film has a twist with teenagers discovering a grave, tracking a serial killer, not reporting him to the police but rather using him to get vengeance on a man who had abused them in the past (with some flashbacks for this). However, as one might expect, things get out of hand as each tries to get the supremacy over the other – leading to the touches of the horror film.

1.A slice of life transferring to horror film?

2.The title, the tones, the bonds, apprentices, the religious overtones?

3.The Queensland settings, the town, homes, the bush, the atmosphere, the score?

4.Mark, in himself, age, experience, the woods, discovering the grave, seeing the van, his expectations?

5.The group of friends, their characters, growing up in the town, as young people, bored, their attitudes? The grave, Mark, the expectations?

6.The van, the sighting, the angles, the audience seeing more than the group?

7.The killer, in the bush, the grave, at home, his van, his manner, look, sinister, his wife, his relationship with her, the tensions at home? Criminal? The grave – his being blackmailed?

8.The young people going into action, searching out the killer, their fears, change of attitude, using him? Their deal? Credibility?

9.Gary Parker, his mother, the background, her influence on him and his character? His bullying, sexual attitudes, the past, the flashbacks?

10.The build-up to a climax, the interconnection of Parker, the killer, the teenagers? The train of events, the murders, each trying to get control? The killer, the rapist? The violent resolution?