Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘The Sacred’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

It can be difficult to come up with ideas if you cannot remember different parts of your life. While most of us remember having a great childhood and all of the crazy lessons we learned from our parents, there are some folks that have tried to suppress these memories for their own reasons. Trying not to remember part of your life can wind up hurting you in the long haul, since your memories are what has made you who you are today. While I am not saying that you need to talk about the bad times to everyone, you need to be able to face your past head on in order to move your life forward.
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Not being able to break out of her writer’s block related funk, Jessie is shocked to see her boyfriend Brian come home with flowers and an idea for the both of them. With an empty cabin in the middle of nowhere that belonged to her deceased aunt, Brian has a proposal for a week away from the world. Knowing that she will not be able to get any work done if Brian is along, Jessie comes up with a counteroffer that leaves him wondering why he even brought it up. Calling the caretaker of the cabin, Jessie comes to the conclusion that she will go alone and try to find her inspiration once again in order to come up with her next story.

Driving Jessie out to the town diner where the caretaker is supposed to pick her up, Brian is beside himself that she does not want him along for the ride. With everyone in the diner looking at the couple strangely, they quickly get over it as George arrives. Saying their goodbyes, Brian heads home as Jessie makes her way up to the old cabin that she used to love as a child. Not being able to remember anything about that time in her life, Jessie is sure that the memories will come back to her quickly. Arriving at the cabin, nothing sparks in Jessie’s mind about it and George warns her that she has her work cut out for her before entering her new home for the week. 

Stepping into the cabin, Jessie sees that it is trashed and wonders what George is really doing as the caretaker, but lets it slide and cleans everything up. Heading out for a run, Jessie is shocked to see a creepy doll in her doorway. Discarding this and checking out the sights and finding a young girl standing next to the river, Jessie’s gears are starting to turn. Hearing a knock on the door, Jessie meets a young girl named Leah who is more than happy to chat with the horror writer and tell her everything she knows about the town and even her aunt. Not thinking that anything out the ordinary is going on, Jessie goes about her daily duties of writing and trying to find out more about her aunt, but the secrets of the town are starting to take their toll on Jessie and the house seems to be keeping something sinister hidden within the walls that is looking to do harm to the woman.

Starting off a little bit slower than I would have liked, once you start seeing what is happening in the cabin and surrounding woods, the story takes some turns that you would not expect. I will admit that the caretaker really stole the show and young Leah gives you clues as to what is going to happen next. The storyline was pretty good overall, and I wish some things happened differently, but if you love foreshadowing, this is really the movie for you. With plenty of wine, a struggling writer, a Shining reference, a kid with a secret, a creepy doll, a stranger in the rain and the thought of the dead rising from the grave and just walking around at night, it’s not a bad movie and it makes you wonder about the times you cannot remember certain things and why that really is. Stay Scared.

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