SATOR
Directed by: Jordan Graham
Starring: Michael Daniel, Rachel Johnson, Aurora Lowe
Deep in the forest, a young man called Adam searches for evidence of Sator, a pagan demonic presence which has hounded his family for generations.
Sator is a very atmospheric folk horror film with great production values but on an initial watch it has a very confusing and hazy narrative. Luckily there is more than enough reason to revisit it.
The film starts with black and white 8mm film stock, the camera floating through a house which is wall-to-wall lined with candles, until we come to a woman standing in front of neat piles of paper upon which she has transcribed…what, exactly? Will we ever find out, or even comprehend what these scenes represent?
Then we are introduced to Adam, as he wanders through the forest with his dog. You get the impression he's on a hunting trip but intermittently he will use an ancient-looking whistle, as if he's trying to summon something with it.
Adam is also using a motion sensor camera but isn't having any luck with it until his brother Pete arrives unannounced. Pete's presence is quite shocking, as he just appears in the cabin. We have no idea at first, especially considering the look of shock on Adam's face, whether the two even know each other or if Pete is just some random stranger who'd wandered in. A couple of brief sentences later we know where we are.
It appears that Adam is trying to make contact with Sator, a demonic presence within the forest. Both his grandmother and his mother were deeply affected by his influence, leading one to conduct automatic writing and the other to vanish without a trace.
There is a lot to like here. The visuals are pretty stunning, especially the locations. Whoever the location scout for the film was is owed a lot of beer. You really get a sense of how ancient the forest is and how untouched by mankind most of it is. The trees are absolutely massive here. There is one scene in particular where Adam walks across a felled tree which had five trunks, joined together at the roots. It’s the sort of place which rams home just how infinitesimal Man's existence actually is. The film's sound design also goes a long way to deliver atmosphere. I recommend watching this either with a decent surround sound system or headphones.
As the film progresses, so does Sator's presence grow, often manifesting in front of Adam. One of my favourite genre staples is when technology is used to uncover something supernatural or ortherworldly which would have otherwise gone unnoticed. We get a solid example of this with a particular photo taken by the motion camera.
Where the film is lacking is in it's development of its characters. Both Adam and Pete are monosyllabic, and the narrative waits until the film is almost over before it attempts to fill in any real detail about the pair and the rest of their family. The film's timeline is also unclear and appears disjointed. However these elements are not gamestoppers here.
THE VERDICT
For some, Sator will be a difficult watch because the narrative isn't straightforward, there is hardly any spoken dialogue and not a lot happens for long stretches of the film. However, those who have a bit of patience will certainly be rewarded with a very unsettling, atmospheric experience. Be sure to look out for the UFO!