"Safe Haven"

Members of the cult prepare to commit suicide and transform.

"Safe Haven" is a short featured in the horror anthology sequel "V/H/S/2". Directed by Gareth Evans, the Welsh director behind the highly popular and influential *Raid* action films as well as the 2018 horror movie *Apostle*, and Timo Tjahjanto, the Indonesian director known for his horror films like *Macabre* and *Killers*, and his action films like *Headshot* and *The Night Comes for Us*. This short, which was also written by the pair, was shot in Indonesia, and is notable for its use of Indonesian instead of English for the entire runtime.

This short follows a news crew who are invited into the isolated compound of a bizarre Indonesian cult. They hope to film a documentary exposing the cults unsavoury activities, but are soon find themselves at the centre of a horrifying, chaotic and violent ritual.

"Safe Haven" is notable for its extreme violence, practical effects and careful escalation of stakes and tension. It has received critical acclaim and is considered by many to be the best segment in the entire "V/H/S" series and one of the best found-footage shorts out there. Irish news company *JOE* called it "The most bonkers, jaw-dropping and memorable horror in recent years" and *Indiewire.com* called it "a towering achievement in horror cinema" and "unrelentingly terrifying and totally brilliant".

This short is preceded by "A Ride in the Park" and followed by "Slumber Party Alien Abduction".

## Plot

A news crew composed of 4 members (Malik the interviewer, his girlfriend Lena, and Adam and Joni the cameramen) infiltrate an Indonesian cult in the hope of shooting a documentary about their mysterious activities. Inside the building, they find the walls adorned in bizarre symbols, schoolchildren in classrooms, and women dressed in white garments. Malik overhears that his fiancée, Lena, is pregnant with Adam's child.

In the basement, Adam finds a bloody woman strapped to a chair who begins convulsing, causing him to run away. While the cult leader is being interviewed, a bell chimes, and he suddenly announces the "time of reckoning" over the intercom. The cultists begin a mass suicide via poison and gunshots, while Joni has his throat cut by the cult leader after repeatedly interrupting the announcement. Lena is abducted by several women in surgical apparel, and Malik is shot dead by one of the cult members. As Adam attempts to rescue Lena, an explosion knocks him down, he stands and attempts to advance into the fiery room only to be intercepted by the cult leader, covered in blood with the cult's symbol written on it, who then proceeds to explode into a cloud of blood and organs. Adam finds Lena placed on an altar but is unable to save her as a horned demon (which resembles The Baphomet) tears its way out of her body. As Adam attempts to flee, he is attacked by the previously deceased cultists and schoolchildren, including Joni and Malik, who have all turned into zombie-like ghouls. As he finally manages to get outside and get into the car, he drives off, only to be rammed by the demon and seriously injured. As he crawls out of the car, the demon looks down on Adam before calling him "Papa". The revelation that the demon is, in fact, his child drives Adam hysterically insane and he starts laughing. Shortly thereafter, the camera malfunctions.

## Cast

* Fachry Albar as Adam
* Hannah Al Rashid as Lena
* Oka Antara as Malik
* Andrew Suleiman as Joni
* Epy Kusnandar as Father
* R R Pinurti as Ibu Sri

## Trivia

* The cult featured in the short are very similar the real-life Jonestown and Heaven's Gate cults, particularly the latter. These cults also committed mass suicide, and Heaven's Gate's ritualistic practices are similar to those seen in "Safe Haven"