When she waves goodbye to her parents at Heathrow Airport nobody would imagine that it would be years before they see one another again.
Casey heads off to New Zealand with her boyfriend for a short trip before she returns to university for her final year studying Law. We only find out in snippets that Cassy dislikes the life set out for her, and it doesn’t really come as a surprise when she and her boyfriend are arguing over their future plans. Tired and fed-up, Cassy is overwhelmed by the kindness shown to her by the group of strangers that picked her up. Drawn to the love and affection shown her, it doesn’t take long for Cassy to be alienated from her past life.
We are given details about the steps taken by cult leaders to recruit new members in between the details given about Casey’s experience. It’s easy for us to see how she is swept up by the pronouncements of the group’s charismatic leader Justin.
Alongside Cassy’s story we see the impact her becoming entrenched in the group’s way of life has on the family she left behind.
Incredibly frustrating for those left behind. Cassy does get the opportunity to step away from this world and this offers her the chance to see some of the issues with the life proposed by Justin. She welcomes some of the changes brought about by the demise of Justin, but the ending simply highlights how callously he manipulated those involved.