Morbid and terrifying. You'll never be the same!
Villageidyll mixed with a whacking great drop of religious fanaticism and occultism, which goes far beyond the limits of what is twisted and morbid! A suitable description of the environment in which the federal investigator Steve Kady (played by Jeremy Sisto) steps into. His job is to examine, why the village of Rockwell Falls has had exactly 436 inhabitants throughout the last 100 years. He pretty quickly figures out that there is more to this village than what meets the eye.
But not even in his wildest dreams could he have foreseen what he now gradually realizes. Not only are those who have their own ideas of life - ideas which doesn't correspond with those of the majority of the inhabitants - looked askance at, it is simply against the law and downright bad for ones health. This movie is a terrifying insight into a puritanical way of life and a perverted piety, which has gotten so far out of hand that you either submit willingly or you are coerced. Regimentation or the alternatives: lobotomy or death - usually in that order! This is what the compassionate and just Steve Kady is up against, because after spending one night in this village, there's no turning back. But can he tacitly come to terms with status quo?
This is yet another absolutely outstanding performance by Jeremy Sisto. He is flanked by Charlotte Sullivan and Fred Durst, last-mentioned is one of the sheriffs in the village, and those two bring a certain degree of sanity into an otherwise mad population. The movie is completely charged. Practically every single scene reveals another horrifying detail or piece for the puzzle, but I will not reveal whether or not all the pieces fall into place. I will, however, reveal that this movie has left an out-and-out terrifying picture of what could lie underneath the surface of perfect villageidyll. Personally, I don't think that I will ever again ascribe the same meaning to the word "villageidyll".
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