Me and the Cult Leader

An exploration of tragedy from two very distinct perspectives. The director Atsushi Sakahara was the victim of a cult’s sarin gas attack in Japan and the film consists of a series of conversations with one of the cult members as they travel around Japan to visit their hometowns and other locations vital to both their identities. You’d expect a tense tone and constant argument but the two are incredibly calm and friendly which allows for an open discussion on how the environments and actions we grow up around and experience fundamentally shape our identities and determine where we end up. 

Sakahara’s tight direction and excellent framing give this cosy conversational feel that draws you in and gets you to see the cult and the reprehensible acts it committed through a more nuanced and understandable lens. The two also explore their similarities and differences with them attending the same university, sharing several niche interests and it’s moving to see both reflect and make progress to understanding and recovering from trauma and the past. It’s a quiet and introspective documentary that really helps you understand why people develop into who they are and how seemingly minor experiences can greatly shape an individual. One of the most interesting methods to stage a retrospective on a terrorist attack and what comes after.

Written by Isaac Holmes