Is The Other Lamb any Good? Worth Watching?

The Other Lamb is a horror movie revolving around a girl who was born into and raised by a cult.

As she enters her early teens, she starts questioning everything, especially the messiah-like figure of the cult who calls himself the Shepherd.

But can she question everyone that raised and shaped her, and escape unscathed?

1. Quick Review

The movie takes up two of the most prominent horror themes in its narrative- cult life and mental and physical abuse.

The Other Lamb - Official Trailer I HD I IFC Midnight

The strange magnetism of a cult and the early teen rebellious nature comes into a direct clash in this hauntingly allegorical movie. 

2. Info Card

3. Is It Worth It?

The Other Lamb, directed by award-winning Polish director Malgorzata Szumowska, is a horror film with a message conveyed through idyllic settings and creepy visuals. 

I. Plot

Selah, a teenager lives with a cult, isolated from the rest of civilisation. The group consists mainly of women, divided into ‘sisters’ and ‘wives’, based on their sexual maturity.

They are led by one man, called Shepherd. The group adore him for his love and attention but is equally afraid of him. 

One wife even says,

“His attention is like the sun: bright and glorious at first, but then it just burns.”

But Selah is one of Shephard’s favourites, a sister to him- until she gets her first period. She goes through jarring rituals to mark the beginning of a new stage of her life.

As her puberty sets in, she is terrorised by visions and nightmares. Her relationship with Shepherd changes drastically and she starts doubting her faith in the cult and everything it holds sacred. 

She notices how the older women in the cult are catatonic and often, some of them go missing. The cluster of dresses in the riverside is a stark indication of what has happened to them.

When one of them called Sarah, the Cursed Wife, opens Selah’s eyes to the murderous and sadistic activities that Shepherd does to keep the cult running, she is horrified.

She grows averse to him and his advances, which triggers him. In a series of nasty sexually forceful acts, he tries to prove his dominance over her.

Shepherd’s well-constructed image, as the saviour of all the women in the cult, is shattered to Selah and, for the first time, she desires to break free. 

What the movie gets right is the concept and the appeal of a cult. Shepherd picked up women who were abandoned or wronged by society.

To them, he was a charismatic leader who could take them away from those who wronged them; he was creating a society for them, where they belonged. For that, they were ready to do anything for him.

This sense of belonging is what makes cults so magnetic, and works on people who have been marginalised or hurt by the regular norms of society. 

Another plus point of the film is its cinematography. The long-drawn shots provide the peacefully eerie tone of the story. They are shocking and alarming, but long.

This is the only thing that might keep the audience away from the film. The film is more about a story and not a series of jump-scares to please the commercial horror movie audience. The movie is for a patient audience.

II. Characters

Selah

Selah is played beautifully by Raffey Cassidy. She has been a part of a few other horror movies such as The Killing of the Sacred Deer and Vox Lux, apart from Tomorrowland.

Her eyes express most of Selah’s emotions- from the pure faith in the cult’s activities at the beginning of the movie to the disbelief when she finds out what the cult actually stands upon- Cassidy is the true star and you cannot help but root for her character. 

Shepherd

Michiel Huisman as Shepherd is perfect. He is charming enough to guise his true intentions but plays the role of a dominant, sadistic patriarchal male perfectly. 

Sarah

Denise Gough lends the film its spooky touch. She plays Sarah, the Cursed Wife of the Shepherd- cursed because she wasn’t as submissive as all the other wives. Her character is unpredictable but strong.

She knows that what is happening to her is wrong but she cannot do much to fix her situation. She relies on Selah to bring about the revolution. As a more experienced older woman in a cult that attaches more importance to younger ones, Denise Gough’s portrayal is raw and powerful.

III. Setting

The film was shot in the forests of Ireland and Belgium and it provides the utopic background of the film. Far, far removed from the civilisation, it helps the film convey that the normal rules of society do not apply there.

The forest and the weather also reflect Selah’s mood for much of the movie- a little alienated and slightly grey for the majority of the time. The setting only adds to the spookiness of the film and increases its plus points. 

4. Grade

5. Final thoughts

The Other Lamb is a mix of some of the best recent psychological thrillers and horror movies. It is a movie filled with allegories and metaphors– a movie not for everyone. It does not succeed in every department but for fans of the horror genre, it is a movie that should be checked out.