Cross-posted from another board I visit:

As said in the trailer thread, I was planning on seeing Captain America 3 this evening, but there was a special event at our cinema, a prerelease of the Louis Theroux documentary "My scientology movie".

The actual release day in the Netherlands, is the Fifth of May, which is an interesting day this year as it combines two national holidays. First is the Christian Ascension Day, where they celebrate Christ leaving behind Earth and ascending to heaven and the other is the non-religious Liberation Day, where we celebrate the end of German occupation of the Netherlands in WWII (and in more recent years celebrate peace and freedom in general). Both kinda appropriate to this movie/documentary.

Before the movie started and as part of the special event, there was a livestream with Louis Theroux and director John Dower, filmed at one of the cinemas the movie was pre-released and streamed to five others in the Netherlands (I was at one of the others). Theroux and Dower (just in from Belgium's premiere, where Theroux appearantly is a major celebrity to both their suprise) were both rather fascinated with the idea of doing a Q&A before the actual movie and Theroux found that he was far more relaxed than he would be after the movie. He asked if there were any Scientology members in the audience and explained that he tried to be as non-judgemental as he could while making this documentary, but nobody was or revealed themselves to be. I can't remember all the questions they asked him (it weren't many, just 5-10). I do remember somebody asking him how different it was between doing a piece on Scientology and a piece on the Westboro Baptist Church, and he said that the main difference was that the WBC, as toxic as their mindset could be, were completely open on their ideas and methods and therefore gave him nearly full access, while he didn't have any access to the Sea Org/Scientology. This tied into a second question, by an audience member who was asking if after so much obscure objects if Scientology wasn't an easy target for him compared to those, to which he replied that due to Scientology being so private and uncooperative that it actually was one of the most difficult documentaries he ever did and it took him 3 years to make. An obvious question about the similarities and differences between this movie and "Going Clear" was answered by both Dower and Theroux that they wanted a more even view of scientology and anti-scientology as they felt that Going Clear was obvious people who had a history with Scientology and therefore had strong feelings about the organisation and they also didn't want to go for shots against the actual beliefs of Scientology themselves, more concerned with the mindset of the people involved and their methods. A question was asked about whether there was going to be a sequel, to which Dower replied that there was enough material for it, but Theroux disagreed, finding the material that was left not very interesting, though they do get into a bit where Theroux hired a private investigator to investigate his own past after Scientology told him that they were making a documentary about him. The PI returns claiming that he couldn't find any dirt to Theroux's disappointment as he KNOWS there is dirt. The presenter of the Q&A asked if Theroux had doubts about the trustworthiness of his own sources, which Theroux first misunderstood as if he had general doubts and he answered that during the editorial stage he had multiple times that he thought there was not enough to make a good documentary and Dower said that he had similar doubts (he was the third director that was asked to do this documentary.. or at least third according to Theroux, but Dower said that the producer had said that there had been more.). Then Theroux answered the actual question (though he claimed that the misunderstood question was the better one) and said that the movie itself would make it quite clear what his feelings were about the trustworthiness of his own sources. Anyway this was all live and isn't in the movie itself.

So that brings us to the movie itself: Despite numerous requests for contact, Theroux is denied any access to Scientology centers and current members. He therefore captured various reenactments of events at Scientology with the help of former Scientology official Marty Rathbun; reenactments of standard Scientology training sessions and events surrounding Scientology leader David Miscavige. The movie is as much about Miscavige (brilliantly played in reenactments by actor Andrew Perez. Don't know how Miscavige (what a name) is in real life, but Perez is a very talently actor and I hope that his casting here has no negative consequences for him in Hollywood) as about Rathbun himself. It's clear that Theroux has doubts about Rathbun (whose lines all seemed very scripted and rehearsed when he's talking to Louis) even if he accepts that the events Rathbun described have happened, but still Theroux is questioning whether Rathbun's current relationship with Miscavige and Scientology is not colouring his memories. Another ex-Scientology member Jeff Hawkins tells him that he beliefs that Rathbun definitely has not revealed everything about Scientology(probably as a lot of those things would incriminate himself as well). Theroux keeps digging at Rathbun, probably in the hope to find something more and probably due to editing I also don't trust Rathbun. Hawkins and other ex-Scientologist Mark Headley come of far more sympathetic than Rathbun in this movie even if Rathbun is a far larger part of the movie, involved in the casting of all the actors and writing the scripts for the reenactments. Between those reenactments we get various scenes where Theroux tries to reach Scientology members only to get stonewalled and he reads from various letters he received from their legal representatives (who seem to know a disturbing amount of detail regarding the movie Theroux and Rathbun are making) and official statements made in the past by Scientology regarding the events reenacted in the movie. He's also informed that Scientology in turn is making a movie about him and tense moments with him being filmed and followed by parties that don't want to identify themselves (funnily enough both teams that are filming him have the same camera man, who claims to just be freelance, but is unwilling to talk more. At least he is more talkative than the people who hired him). The Scientologists don't seem to handle Theroux's methods well though, where he keeps them on camera himself, refuses to leave what he beliefs to be public places and tries to get an actual conversation going.

Overall, I don't think we really learn anything new about Scientology themselves here if you have been following media reports on them before , but Hawkins, Headley, Rathbun and others do offer an insight in the mindset it takes to be a member of such an organisation, why people would buy into it and why they won't leave even if things are as terrible as they say and why FBI or police force can't or won't intervene, something which Theroux tries to understand throghout the movie. Also they cast actor Rob Alter as Tom Cruise, but he is used very little throughout the whole reenactments (I can think of only two scenes, not including the casting), while Andrew Perez is used a lot, but also goes with Theroux to various locations and asks various questions himself to Rathbun.

So recommended even if we don't actually get any closure (because what closure is there to be gotten at this point in time. Scientology is still active, Rathbun states that his mission is to shut them down as he has stated before).