The Believers – 1987 – Satanic Cult of sorts

I saw The Believers under another title in the late ’80s. I was pretty impressed by it but since the title was in Swedish I didn’t know what movie it really was. Of course, I could have investigated at any given time. At least since the internet and IMDb came into my life. After a while, I totally forgot about it too. For some reason, the film surfaced in my mind and I felt that I needed o get hold of it. It’s so easy getting hold of most flicks today so I ordered it and a week later it was in my hand.

My memories from it were very sparse. I knew the basic story and thought that I remembered the end scene. It turned out that I didn’t. The Believers didn’t end the way I thought it did. Not that it matters. All too much the better in fact. That means that I was more surprised than I thought I would be. It’s always nice not to know the ending of a movie and even better when you get surprised by it.

The star of The Believers is Martin Sheen. These days he might be known more as Charlie Sheens father but rest assure, he’s been around and is a great actor on his own merits. He gets caught up in this murder investigation where young children are found to be sacrificed in some religious ritual. As he discovers that his own son is about to be the next victim everything around him escalates. He can’t be sure who’s in the cult and who’s not.

I think it’s easier for us to figure out who’s who so to speak. But we’re lead behind the light too. We don’t know who’s in or it or not. Sure, some are quite obvious but not all of the people surrounding him. I would say that The Believers is a very good movie. It’s frightening and the suspense is great. I would put this film high up on a list of satanic-like cult movies out there. Don’t be discouraged by the Believers is from the ’80s. It has aged well and sure live up to the modern film standard.