A

September. 09,1998      
Rating:
6.8
Trailer Synopsis Cast

Roughly chronological, from 3/96 to 11/96, with a coda in spring of 1997: inside compounds of Aum Shinrikyo, a Buddhist sect led by Shoko Asahara. (Members confessed to a murderous sarin attack in the Tokyo subway in 1995.) We see what they eat, where they sleep, and how they respond to media scrutiny, on-going trials, the shrinking of their fortunes, and the criticism of society. Central focus is placed on Hiroshi Araki, a young man who finds himself elevated to chief spokesman for Aum after its leaders are arrested. Araki faces extreme hostility from the Japanese public, who find it hard to believe that most followers of the cult had no idea of the attacks and even harder to understand why these followers remain devoted to the religion, if not the violence.

Similar titles

Witness Underground
Witness Underground
Punk rock, B-movies, and Jehovah’s Witnesses unite in this heartfelt documentary. As members of Jehovah’s Witness start to explore culture outside of their religion, they have to wrestle with the possibility of being excommunicated from friends and family. Featuring in-depth interviews and extensive home video footage, Witness Underground tells the story of punk rocker Witnesses pushing against the highly controlling Jehovah’s Witnesses religion as they build their own community through music and art. This prolific community of Witness musicians create their own record label, Nuclear Gopher, and become early adopters of promoting their music through the internet, including what may have been the first album to ever be livestreamed. This community’s history is well documented through archival footage of their home movies and self-produced music videos, all with a very charming energy.
Witness Underground 2024
Beyond Our Ken
Prime Video
Beyond Our Ken
To the Australian media Kenja is a 'secretive cult', their leader described in Parliament as a 'seedy conman'. Despite preparing to fight yet another court case Ken Dyers and Jan Hamilton allow a film crew unprecedented access to the 'spiritual evolvement centre' they founded in 1982. How can the view from inside Kenja be so different to the one outside? Through remarkable verite footage and candid interviews, Beyond Our Ken explores the anatomy and ambiguity of the 'cult' enigma.
Beyond Our Ken 2008
The Prophet and the Space Aliens
The Prophet and the Space Aliens
As a young man, Rael was visited by aliens who proclaimed him to be 'the last prophet'. That was in the 1970s. Today, the charismatic Frenchman is the leader of the world's largest UFO religion.
The Prophet and the Space Aliens 2020
Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple
Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple
Featuring never-before-seen footage, this documentary delivers a startling new look at the Peoples Temple, headed by preacher Jim Jones who, in 1978, led more than 900 members to Guyana, where he orchestrated a mass suicide via tainted punch.
Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple 2006
Electronic Awakening
Electronic Awakening
Documentary - The film ELECTRONIC AWAKENING offers insight into the inner workings of the brain and its metaphysical connection to the repetitive beats that create at sense of oneness, unity and freedom that millions feel on the dance floor. - Adam Apollo, Chiara Baldini, Eric Baumgartner
Electronic Awakening 2011
Waco: The Rules of Engagement
Waco: The Rules of Engagement
In one of the most tragic face-offs in the history of law enforcement, the deadly debacle at Waco pitted the Branch Davidian sect against the FBI in an all-out war. This documentary makes the most of footage and recordings to examine how the events that led to the tragedy of April 19, 1993, unfolded, and how the FBI's unrelenting approach made what was already a bad situation much worse.
Waco: The Rules of Engagement 1997
Mysteries of the Freemasons
Mysteries of the Freemasons
The Freemasons claim to be a civic-minded fraternity bound together by harmless rituals, yet throughout their long history, they have been accused of plotting to take over the world, as well as being devil worshipers who stole King Solomon's treasure. This dramatic reenactment, interspersed with expert interviews, tells the Freemasons' central myth concerning Hiram Abiff, the mythical builder of Jerusalem's Temple of Solomon. Features historians Stephen Bullock Dan Burstein, Brent Morris Akram Elias, and author David Shugarts. But will a rational view reveal the Freemasons as an important and honorable thread in the fabric of America?
Mysteries of the Freemasons 2007

You May Also Like

Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl
Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl
A taped performance of the Encanto Live-to-Film Concert Experience at the Hollywood Bowl. The original cast puts on a miracle of a concert as they sing the favorite songs, accompanied by a full orchestra and 50 person ensemble, and the Hollywood Bowl transforms into Casita!
Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl 2022
One Day as a Lion
One Day as a Lion
Jackie Powers will stop at nothing to prevent his son from following him into a life of crime. With his mob employer in pursuit, a chance encounter at a roadside diner charts a new path.
One Day as a Lion 2023
I Am Rage
I Am Rage
An ancient cult embroiled in a sinister blood trade makes the deadly mistake of abducting a young woman with a violent, shocking past.
I Am Rage 2023
Avatar
Avatar
In the 22nd century, a paraplegic Marine is dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission, but becomes torn between following orders and protecting an alien civilization.
Avatar 2009
Mount Adams
Mount Adams
UFO investigators find themselves fighting for survival as alien monsters hunt them on the slopes of Mount Adams.
Mount Adams 2021
Avatar: The Way of Water
Avatar: The Way of Water
Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, learn the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.
Avatar: The Way of Water 2022
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Prime Video
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters the Spider Society, a team of Spider-People charged with protecting the Multiverse’s very existence. But when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders and must set out on his own to save those he loves most.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 2024
Thor: Love and Thunder
Thor: Love and Thunder
After his retirement is interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher, a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods, Thor Odinson enlists the help of King Valkyrie, Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster, who now wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor. Together they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.
Thor: Love and Thunder 2022
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Siblings Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter step through a magical wardrobe and find the land of Narnia. There, they discover a charming, once peaceful kingdom that has been plunged into eternal winter by the evil White Witch, Jadis. Aided by the wise and magnificent lion, Aslan, the children lead Narnia into a spectacular, climactic battle to be free of the Witch's glacial powers forever.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 2005
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves 2023