The Endless

Ahead of their involvement in Moon Knight, it’s worth revisiting Justin Benson’s and Aaron Moorhead’s The Endless, a rugged sci-fi brain teaser which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2017. This is one of those films for which it’s important to have the right expectations going in. Doing so will drastically increase the chances of your enjoying the viewing experience.  Go into this expecting a low-budget, sturdily built sci-fi mindfuck, and you’ll be very, very glad you made the trip to Camp Arcadia.

The film opens on two brothers, Justin and Aaron, played by the directors (a tad unimaginative, but go with it). They’re some years out from having escaped a “UFO death cult” and now are enjoying their independence and the ability to think for themselves.  Or are they? They sludge through each unsatisfying, same-y day cleaning houses. Aaron, the younger of the two, is existentially restless and when they receive a mysterious videotape in the mail sent by a member of their former cult family, he begs his brother to go back to the camp, if only for a visit.  Justin reluctantly obliges and they set off on a trip to Camp Arcadia, planning to only stay for one day and one night.  It gives nothing away to say that they decide to extend their stay, and mysterious events begin to occur at the camp. How much truth is there to the camp’s beliefs? Is it a suicide cult or is the much-talked about ‘Ascension’ something more nebulous? More sinister? And off our story goes.

From here, as things get progressively wackier, the film is anchored by the two lead performances, particularly Benson’s. He’s saddled with the more thematically complex role, as he plays a brother unwillingly, reluctantly shoved into the role of caretaker, having to look after his younger sibling.  It’s a thankless, exhausting task, and the character says as much at one point in the film, in a revealing confession.  Occasionally punctuating his gruff exterior are the obvious warmth within as well as bursts of welcome humor.  (I dare you not to let out an uncomfortable laugh when the brothers have a heated bunkbed debate about whether women can be pedophiles.) Moorhead is fine as well, though his emotions run a smaller, less dramatically interesting gamut—he serves as more of a plot device to coax his brother back to the camp.  There are also impressive performances from the actors portraying the cult members, particularly Tate Ellington, whose Hal is a warm, paternal cult leader that you can’t help but trust.

Another star here is the writing, as the film begins to lean into its horror and sci-fi trappings. The film opens with a quote by Lovecraft, whose legacy is evident here.  Much of the dread throughout the film is linked to fear of the unknown, as the main characters begin to realize that Something is watching them, manipulating them.  There may or may not even be a giant monster at one point.  This is Lovecraft to a T.  (This review is deliberately vague because, even though the film is going on 5 years old at this point, the secrets of the plot are worth keeping.)  As with any good horror/sci-fi tale, this film is rich with layers and multiple meanings.  The horrendous events that occur, along with the ongoing dread, serve as vehicles to explore deeper questions.  The film touches on existential angst, free will, what it means to have a purpose, and of course, family.  This is also definitely a film that warrants multiple viewings.  Even toward the end of the film, you’ll begin to have a few ‘aha’ moments, noticing elements from the first act that are alluded to in the ending sequences. If this all sounds a bit heavy, it’s leavened with welcome bursts of humor. At certain intervals, the brothers turn to each other and acknowledge how ‘cult-y’ everything is; these acknowledgements deepen your empathy for these characters and give the audience permission to relax, if only briefly.

Holding on to the strong writing, plotting, and acting will help you to overlook the rough edges, which are part and parcel of this low-budget production. The aesthetic is grainy and lo-fi, and the shaky camerawork is a bit much in some scenes.  The special effects, while they’re interesting to look at and they always further the plot, are aggressively cheap-looking.  And despite the strong central performances, some of the supporting cast chew the scenery in a way that’s not entirely satisfying—looking at you, James Jordan’s Shitty Carl (yes, that’s a character).

The film-making duo followed this film in 2019 with Synchronic, which overall is a better movie.  It has a more conventional and easy to follow narrative, arguably better special effects, and it’s anchored by the always watchable Anthony Mackie.  However, The Endless is surely the better film.  It sticks with you and makes you uncomfortable in a way that the later film doesn’t.  Moorhead and Benson are one of the more interesting filmmaking teams working today, and The Endless is absolutely worth checking out. The twists and turns and deeper meanings aren’t fully apparent on the initial viewing, but you’ll find yourself replaying certain sequences in your head over and over until you decide, it’s time to watch it again and unpack this puzzle box of a film (again).