It is frustrating viewing, but like many of Berg’s other works, it is a story that needed to be told.Īs aforementioned, Berg doesn’t shy away from unpleasant subject matter, and is often the person willing to tackle the most insidious of tales. From his cell, he continues to correspond with his followers, issuing apocalyptic warnings of imminent natural disasters. Though Jeffs is now imprisoned, there are many children still living in dangerous conditions, and Berg has her doubts that many members of the cult will be able to shake off their leader’s influence. Despite a trail of abuse and ruined lives, Warren has maintained his grip on power. Even now he has a devout following numbering in the tens of thousands - many of whom would give their life at any moment with just one word from the “great” man. The finely crafted film examines Warren Jeffs' life and shows us exactly how he became a worshipped and adored Prophet. To say he took things to the next level would be putting it mildly - he bridged the gap between sister wives and ecclesiastical rape, befuddling the moral compass of his entire congregation. In a short time however, Jeffs managed to expand these practices and the power of his position in unprecedented ways. When lead subject Warren Jeffs rose to Prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints, he took control of a religion with a very long history of polygamous and underage marriage. The Oscar-nominated documentarian delves into another story of innocence abused, but this time the lens is turned on authority figures in the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints rather than the upper echelon of the Catholic faith. To say I admire and have utmost respect for what she does would probably be a better way to phrase things, as the incredible talent is one who doesn’t mind getting her hands dirty when it comes to some of the most repugnant topics out there.Ī chilling portrait of a megalomaniac, tonight’s documentary helmed by Berg is PROPHET’S PREY, a narrative of warped religious authority and patriarchal abuse every bit as chilling as her pedophile priest exposé, DELIVER US FROM EVIL. Usually featuring subject matter that is incredibly hard to stomach, her films are amongst some of the most confronting being released today, and completely compelling. Retrieved March 10, 2021.To say that I “love” the work of documentarian Amy Berg would be a poor choice of words. ^ "Showtime Documentary Films Sets Premiere Date for Prophets Prey"."AFI DOCS 2015 Lineup Features Albert Maysles, Alex Gibney and More". "Sundance: 'Prophet's Prey' Director Says Warren Jeffs is 'More Powerful From Prison' ". "Amy Berg's 'Prophet's Prey': Sundance Review - Hollywood Reporter". "Sundance 2015: Amy Berg Discusses 'Prophet's Prey' and Acquiring New Footage of Warren Jeffs". Writers Guild of America Award for Best Documentary Screenplay - Nominated.The site's critical consensus reads, "Prophet's Prey finds documentarian Amy Berg striking again at evil masquerading as righteousness - and, as she did with Deliver Us from Evil, hitting her targets with impressive precision." On Metacritic, the film holds a rating of 77 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". It holds a 93% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 27 reviews, with a weighted average of 7.00/10. Prophet's Prey received positive reviews from film critics. The film was released in a limited release on September 18, 2015, followed by a broadcast on Showtime on October 10, 2015. It also screened at AFI Docs on June 18, 2015. The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2015. The two make engaging if contrasting guides through the complex story, with Krakauer coming across as the wisecracking, cerebral counterpoint to Brower's burly man-of-action. īoth Brower and Krakauer are heavily featured as witnesses-the film argues they played a major role in Jeffs's capture-and the men take consulting producer and executive producer credits respectively. It was released in a limited release on September 18, 2015, followed by broadcast on Showtime on October 10, 2015.īerg was approached by Sam Brower and Jon Krakauer with the idea for the film. Ron Howard serves as an executive producer under his Imagine Entertainment banner. The film is an adaption of the 2011 book of the same name by Sam Brower, who also serves as a producer on the film. The film follows Warren Jeffs, the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, who is now running the religion from the confines of the Texas state prison, serving out a life sentence, for the rape of young girls. Prophet's Prey is a 2015 American documentary directed and written by Amy J.
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