Jon Hewitt’s horror thriller Acolytes is a skilfully executed piece of filmmaking in a genre that traditionally has provided far too few success stories in this country. It manages to be a riveting ride and one layered with a series of slowly converging sub-plots, whilst sporting an authentically vicious edge - one that ultimately leaves a nasty but not dissatisfying aftertaste in your mouth.

The setting of a nondescript Australian suburb is disarmingly humdrum, but as enough films have taught us over the years, this where the bad stuff really happens. Three disenchanted teens struggling through school are on the prowl for cheap thrills to alleviate their boredom when they chance upon a disturbed area in a nearby forest. Mark (Sebastian Gregory) is the outsider, often a spectator as his best mate James (Joshua Payne) cavorts with girlfriend Chasely (Hannah Mangan-Lawrence), who he secretly has a crush on. The potential love triangle creates internal tensions of their own as their lives suddenly veer down a dark alley.

Curious, they explore the recently turned over section of land and to their horror they discover the remains of a corpse. Combining both the public awareness of a series of missing girls in the community with their hatred for local hood, Gary Parker (Michael Dorman) - who perpetrated some horrific act upon the two boys in the past - they concoct a fabulous tale of his possible involvement. When Mark spots a four wheel drive with a distinctive motif on its spare tyre cover tearing away along a nearby road not long after, a search - with his friends along as accomplices - is ignited. Though realizing Parker is not the killer, they nevertheless decide to make use of their secret knowledge to exploit the situation. An unlikely daytime break-in on the premises of their suspect, Ian Wright (Joel Edgerton), procures a phone number and they devise a blackmailing plan, inventing an added twist in hopes of erasing their tormentor: kill Parker or they’ll had Wright’s details - with their suspicions - over to the police.

A series of tense and dangerous showdowns follow in which the trio of teens flirt with a dangerous adversary whose true nature belies their naïve expectations of the situation and the power they foolishly assume is theirs to wield. As quickly as they’ve convinced themselves of gaining the upper hand in a battle of wits with a serial killer, they lose control, comprehending too late that they’ve been in over their heads from the outset.

The three leads are all promising young performers and provide high quality performances, especially Mangan-Lawrence who also had vital roles in (briefly) The Square as well as the recent Lucky Country. Gregory, who played a comparable role in 2009’s Beautiful, is even more convincing in the crucial role of Mark. Cinematographer Mark Pugh brings a stunning visual aesthetic to the table, somehow elevating what might have been a stock-standard genre piece into an impressive stylistic whole. A series of disorienting perspectives, making deft use of the suburban landscape, ensures that the film’s visual artfulness is one of its most striking features.

Hewitt’s sonic palette is varied and unsettling, closer to sound design than score. It really does contribute in a substantial way as well to the lingering eerie tone that begins to seep in at the edges, saturating every frame. The grim, humourless context and intense performance from Edgerton provide the film with further harrowing elements, though those sunglasses of his seem like a slightly unnecessary affectation after a while.

It all begins to resemble a surreal and atmospheric trance as the dangerous ramifications of their actions begin to take a toll on the trio and their frayed relationships. Despite the corner Hewitt has seemingly boxed himself into with his familiar scenario, he’s able to spring a couple of clever twists before the sombre and haunting final frames arrive. The use of a minor character - familiar from Hewitt’s past work - in a key moment is worked over for swift but maximum impact, and rather than continue a bloodless drive for the finishing wire the director clamps down ruthlessly upon his teenage protagonists. In something of a surprise Acolytes, in its final gory thrusts, proves to be a superior chiller with a clinical and enjoyably macabre finishing touch.

Review by David O’Connell

Director: Jon Hewitt
Screenwriter: Jon Hewitt, S.P. Krause and Shayne Armstrong
Cast: Joel Edgerton, Sebastian Gregory, Hanna Mangan-Lawrence, Joshua Payne, Michael Dorman, Belinda McClory, Holly Baldwin, Anthony Phelan, Bella Heathcote, Sue Dwyer