Tags:
Film: Tribe
Year: 2025
Director: Dan Asma
Writer: Dan Asma
Starring: Dan Asma, Nicole Jones and Tyona Bowman
Review:
This is a film that I got the chance to see via screener thanks to Dan Harary from Asbury PR Agency. He sent over a press release and information about this film. I was intrigued and since there is limited information out there regarding this film, that added to it. There was time between perusing the information and watching, so I came into this one blind.
Synopsis: a desperate man lost in the west coast mountains must reconstruct his past to step back from the edge of insanity
Now for this film, we are following a character named Devin. I believe he’s played by the writer and director, Dan Asma. We start with seeing him looking in rough shape. His eye is messed up; his face looks like he has an infection and the veins on his hands look rough. He tells us that he doesn’t remember how to drive so he’s stuck here. There are a series of hard drives that he’s going to go through to see if he can piece together what happened. This fills us in on how we got here.
This story is told over the videos on seven of these drives. It starts with Devin telling us about how he retired. His ex-wife, Kate (Nicole Jones), calls to see if she can drop off some items that were left with her from a mutual friend, Charlie (Keaton Asma), before they passed away. These three were friends in college. It was a shock when Charlie took his own life. He is always troubled though. We learn that his family was part of a commune that lived in the mountains. They were the Church of the Heavenly Light, or something along these lines. The information left to him makes Devin curious to investigate it.
It leads him out to the desert where he finds a shipping container. What is odd is that Charlie talked about it thirty years prior. When Devin finds it, it hasn’t aged a day. He has encounters here with deformed people that don’t seem primitive. This leads him to finding notebooks and videos that he sends off to different experts as they try to help him piece things together. One of them is a former student, Archer (Tyona Bowman). The more she investigates things, the more she becomes concerned.
This commune seems more like a cult. They are an off shoot of the Mormons as they took a darker path with their faith. What Devin finds will change him forever and it is more than he ever bargained for.
That is where I’ll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I want to start is that this is an effective found footage film. This is a filming style that can be effective and when it is, I’m a fan. We see that there’s something wrong with Devin. It then goes back into the past to show what led to this point. For me, this takes tension away since we know that he’s going to continue doing whatever he will since he must end up at this point. With how interesting the story is, I can roll with it as well.
Now that I’ve set that up, let me delve more into what we’re getting here. Devin, now retired, receives information from his ex-wife. Charlie gave these items to Nicole to give to Devin upon his retirement. He becomes engrossed in analyzing the footage, prompting him to explore desert caves near Mount Shasta to understand the evidence. His journey is engaging. He also sends findings to experts, which adds credibility and advances the plot.
There was something in the press release that I saw after watching this. Inspired by Philip K. Dick's futuristic concepts and H.P. Lovecraft's cosmic horror, this narrative delves into a strict Mormon offshoot cult. Initially adhering to their lord's teachings, the cult succumbs to corruption, a testament to human nature's ability to justify any action once swayed.
I will say that even though I love how these ideas are explored, not all the visuals work. Let’s discuss the filmmaking aspects. The found-footage style effectively draws viewers into Devin's intriguing journey down a rabbit hole of information, despite some questionable decisions regarding warnings. Charlie's late revelation clarifies things. The lead's isolation heightens atmosphere and tension. The creepy, deformed individuals and sound design contribute to the realistic feel, with CGI effects mostly forgivable due to dreams/hallucinations, though the climax falters.
All that is left then is acting performances. The film has an effective amateur feel, led by Dan Asma (or whoever plays Devin), whose performance conveys despair as his character deteriorates from his relentless investigation. Jones is convincing as his caring yet distant ex-wife. Keaton Asma effectively serves as the catalyst for the descent into madness, and Bowman is good as the concerned former student. Justina Biosah, Ray Buffer, and the contacted experts provide a well-rounded cast.
In conclusion, this offers a compelling and intriguing journey into cosmic horror and cultic themes, drawing inspiration from literary greats. While the visual effects have some minor flaws, the found-footage style, coupled with strong performances, effectively immerses the viewer in Devin's unraveling sanity. I recommend this film for fans of found footage horror, though I acknowledge that not everyone will necessarily connect with this particular stylistic choice.
My Rating: 8 out of 10