Godhead brings prophecy, twins and a loaded gun to Fantasia Festival

Godhead at Fantasia Festival has arrived with a sharp little nightmare: a rural Catholic priest, two prophecy-minded twins, a gun and a boy kept out of sight. Variety reports that Mark H. Rapaport’s new black-and-white film had its world premiere screenings this week at Montreal’s genre-focused festival, where audiences responded enthusiastically.

The film stars Al Warren as the priest. Sarah Coffey and Kimball Farley play the strange twins who turn up believing they are tied to a prophecy and need the priest to help complete it, according to Variety. Luke Speakman plays the young boy whom the priest appears to keep indoors.

Variety described the movie as a tense chamber drama built from faith, sex, deception and unease, with camerawork that gives the story a prying, secretive feel. The outlet also noted that the plot’s turns are best left intact for audiences.

What is Godhead about?

Godhead is a black-and-white thriller centered on a Catholic priest whose closed-off rural life is disrupted by twins who claim a prophetic purpose and arrive armed. Rapaport told Variety the film is framed as a Hitchcockian thriller while also serving as his way to examine hypocrisy, manipulation and abusive authority.

Rapaport said the story grew out of his own frustration with authority figures he felt treated him unfairly. He cited religious figures, family and bosses as examples of people who can hold power over someone from childhood into adulthood, and said his own trusting nature made that dynamic feel frightening to him.

The director said he tried to keep the film’s twisty structure grounded in character rather than letting genre mechanics take over. He told Variety his aim was to follow what the characters want and feel, even as the story moves into darker territory.

Why did Mark H. Rapaport shoot Godhead in black and white?

Rapaport told Variety that black and white felt natural after his 2023 debut feature, Hippo, which also premiered at Fantasia and was well received. He said audiences responded to that film’s look, and he began writing Godhead with the same visual approach in mind.

He also pointed to Robert Eggers’ The Lighthouse as an influence, especially for the idea of placing a small group of characters in a world that feels outside a fixed time. Rapaport said the black-and-white style also connected to the film’s interest in good and evil, right and wrong, truth and falsehood.

The director said the movie ultimately pushes into a gray area, even though its images are stripped of color. For him, that unresolved moral space became part of the horror.

How did Godhead’s ending change?

Rapaport told Variety that an earlier ending was more directly punishing toward the film’s evil characters. He said conversations with Warren, who plays the priest, led him to consider what would happen if the ending made room for forgiveness.

That change, Rapaport said, made the conclusion more unsettling to him. He told Variety he would not mind if viewers leave thinking characters made the wrong choice, because he sees the film as posing a question rather than handing over a clean answer.

Godhead is currently seeking distribution. Variety reports that Alief is handling worldwide sales for the film.

This story draws on original reporting from Variety.