Perihelion

Whispers and hints about the Celestial Light Temple have trickled down throughout the decades... They were a strange cult. People who joined never left. Their beliefs had something to do with beings from outer space... Our story begins with this narrative from an off-screen documentary film maker who wants to tell the tale of CLT cult and the night 20 years ago when they shocked the world with a multitude of horrible, unexplained deaths. His “documentary” is the film we are watching. From interviews, both expert and personal, we learn the story of the Temple – how it was founded by a musician-turned-seeker now known only as the Atma. How over time he gathered fanatical followers via speaking engagements, and later by mailing out video tapes. And how he established chapterhouses of the cult throughout the nation – suburban homes run like prisons, wherein his followers are under constant surveillance. Once the “documentary” has firmly established these facts, our Documentarian lets us in on an incredible coup – He has obtained the internal security video footage from a notorious CLT chapterhouse, and cut it together in a linear narrative. We will witness the last day ourselves... Visiting luminaries from the Celestial Light temple chapter in America drive to a suburban house in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. They are video taping for posterity. Inside the house, with the security camera footage cut in, we learn about the strictures of the household and the dynamics of this particular chapter. Acolytes both young and old live here, a source of genuine tension as a few of the Atma's earliest disciples co-habitate within but are outranked within the pecking order by far younger members of the house. More troubling is the presence of Brian, rebellious new member who can't quite be indoctrinated, and who we know through our Documentarian's narration is currently incarcerated for multiple homicides in the present day. He is tolerated because of his childhood friendship with both the house leader, Ryan, and Patty, one of the youngest house members and someone we know to have escaped the coming violence. Things are coming to a head between Bryan and Ryan and only a special announcement from the outside luminaries briefly calms the waters – This is the auspicious day the Atma always spoke off, the perihelion conjunction in which the beings from the stars will arrive to take them away from these Earthly bonds to their ascendant destination. As night falls and their esteemed guests arrive, one thing becomes abundantly clear. The Atma is no longer in charge and his cruel second-in-command has some grisly plans for the people inside this house. Not having any of it Bryan kicks up a fuss, and is sent to a “quiet room”, a makeshift prison cell inside the house. Patty is sent to guard the door. It is through this barrier Bryan makes a heartfelt confession – He isn't in the house for Ryan, he's there for Patty, someone he has loved since grade school. Bryan feels in his gut things are going to get far worse and begs Patty to escape the house before she comes to harm. When the police knock on the door, and Patty is sent to answer the door, she takes advantage of the moment and leaps out of the house into the arms of the police. In the ensuing stand-off with the police, we see things inside the house spiral into madness. The Atma's apprentice has everyone drink a special Kool-aid cocktail at gun point. Bryan gets hold of one of the guns and shoots the guards – As the room around him fills with light. In the final interviews, we learn about Bryan's arrest, the families effected, the shock of the news around the world. We end with Patty, and a question that nearly breaks her – When the bodies were brought out, their numbers didn't match the number of people on the tapes – Why was that?