User reviews

If the U.S. wants to proclaim religious freedom and then push Christianity in public, then it's only fair for the Satanists to do the same.

Well unless you are already familiar with the Satanic Temple that is. I wasn't and I was quite surprised. If Satanists engage in equal rights, clean the streets of trash and do things most would consider Christian ... that is quite a surprise. Even if you are not into "Satan" (and I am not), they even give you a yin/yang balance. As in, if you have this statue put up, we want one of ours there too.

Was quite surprised to learn about a lot of things and this is quite entertaining overall (there's nudity in case that matters to you one way or the other). Now after I watched the movie someone told me that the documentary shines a light on the organisation that does not include some of their darker moments. One is included when we see a member split, but there seem to be more things. For that I guess there is the internet. Or maybe a sequel to this? Who knows

"Hail Satan?" (2019 release; 95 min.) is a documentary about the Satanic Temple (TST) and its search for the separation of church and state. As the movie opens, we are in "Tallahassee, 2013" where TST is holding a rally on the steps of the Florida statehouse. Hardly anyone is giving it any attention. We are introduced to Lucien, the spokesperson for TST. When TST wants to do a black mass in Boston, the catholic church and community in Boston organizes a massive protest against "these rapists and murderers", while of course the reality is that the Boston catholic church has allowed sexual abuse against young kids for decades and decades... At this point we are 10 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll jut have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the latest documentary from Penny Lane, who previously brought us "Our Nixon". Here she explores the hypocrisy in certain segments of the population, who are easily riled up by these satanists. Lane along the way brings us a History 101 of satanism. The core of the film goes to looking at the separation of church and state, which TST wants enforced. The segments dealing with the 10 Commandments are instrumental. So this documentary is not quite what I expected it to be, and in fact is likely to make you think about a few things in a way that you might not have expected. Kudos to Lane for that.

"Hail Satan?" premiered at the Sundance festival earlier this yer to positive acclaim, and recently opened at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Friday early evening screening where I saw this at was attended poorly (6 people, including myself). Hopefully this can gain a larger audience as it is released on other platforms. If you like documentaries, or have an interest in issues surrounding the separation of church and state, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater (if you still can), on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

Hail Satan? is an entertaining ride and shows how divided we have become as a nation. I understand how some might view this film as provocative but honestly its as dark as vanilla ice cream. The real darkness comes from those with pitchforks ready in hand fearing the unknown, the others, maybe our selves. While not the most daring doc I've seen this year, certainly a good one.

Hail Satan? was very informative and educational. It's worth watching whether you're interested in joining the Satanic Temple or just open minded enough to look at things through a different (religious) perspective. It stresses religious equality/freedom for ALL religions, not just Christianity.. I can't wait for this to come out on a streaming site (hey Netflix!) to show all of my family and friends that Satanism is not at ALL what they think it is. Educate yourselves, people. Watch Hail Satan?.

Ask people if they have ever considered becoming a Satanist and most will answer NO, but if you watch this film with an open mind you will find yourself wondering AM I A SATANIST?

That said, this is NOT a recruitment film and I applaud all involved for allowing a "warts and all" look into the inner working of the group. A well made, informative, and fascinating documentary.

I look forward to seeing more from Director Penny Lane and I look foward to hearing more about TST.

I'm not a christian, nor am I a member of the Satanic Temple.

So when I went into this film I wanted to see a fair and unbiased documentary about the movement and the issues that they are about.

Instead, we get a propaganda piece for the temple. Almost no time whatsoever is dedicated to the opposition, and they are often presented as babbling fools. (which in some cases, they probably are).

It would have been nice to see some criticism against the movement and especially against it's members, as well as letting them defend themselves and talk without being over-edited.

This just feels like a very long commercial.

Was not sure about this show but thought it was very thought provoking and my mindset changed throughout

Now I will happily admit that I knew nothing about the "Satanic Temple" when I saw this preview screening. At first, I struggled to establish whether or not it was a "mockumentary" on the excesses of this movement - particularly when Lucien Greaves (surely a made up name?!) was being interviewed. I am still not entirely convinced that this isn't a hoax! What it does do, regardless, is challenge quite a few assumptions about "good" and "evil". A lot of what the Temple appears to stand for is quite laudable - from equality of worship and the disestablishment of the Christian church from the US state to improved local services and better schooling. It might actually be more of an effective social commentary rather than a critique on Satanism. Worth watching, but take with a pinch of salt!

What's truly sad when you talk about a documentary like "Hail Satan?" is the 1-star reviews from "concerned Christians" who either didn't watch the movie or were so insistent on having their own beliefs represented and satisfied that they completely missed the point of not just the film, but of the organization for which it represents. This is a really great look into the Satanic Temple. It covers a lot of ground in its relatively short running time. It details, in as much detail as any intelligent human being could ever need, the beliefs of the organization as well as the things they stand for. No longer is Satanism a closeted belief system wherein society lives in perpetual fear of their animals and young children going missing and being sacrificed to the Lord of Darkness. In fact, when you talk about The Satanic Temple, you're not even talking about a group of people who believe in the devil. They view "Satan" simply as an adversarial being, and their core message is very simple: If you open the door for God, you have to be willing to open the door for Satan. This film is an example of a struggle for equality in society, a governmental fight to have equal religious representation. Perhaps the finest moment in the film is the discussion on the Ten Commandments monument that The Satanic Temple fought in court. The short of it is that there was a monument, which was donated to the state Capitol by Paramount Pictures following the release of their "Ten Commandments" film in the 50s with Charlton Heston. The Satanic Temple, seeing the blatant support of Christianity, constructed a large monument of Baphomet and had to fight to be included on the state grounds. It's little things like these that really represent what the organization stands for, and for anyone who has any kind of misconceptions otherwise it's recommended that you check this film out.. You can agree with their belief system or you can be opposed in every possible way, but to say that they bring nothing of value to the table or that they are, in any way, shape or form, a threat to society or to "the children" (everyone loves to clutch their pearls and whine about "thinking of the children," as though they can't make their own decisions). They exist, they are as valid as everyone else, and they deserve to be heard and given consideration to just like any other human beings on the planet. Whether you believe they should or not. Lucien Greaves is running a really great organization that uses symbolism and titles to shock, offend and, most importantly, to troll. And Christians around the world have taken that bait. Over and over and over again. And they'll continue to do so. Just shut up and watch the film.

"You're gonna go to Hell!" "I believe in it and I'm very excited about it."

It's hard to imagine that one of the most powerful country in the world is overrun by Christian zealots. Even the local governments are nothing but a failed institutional entity.

Hail Satan? Is a smart, witty and thought provoking documentary film that focuses on The Satanic Temple, a nontheistic religious and political activist group that struggle to change the political landscape in the United States by demanding the separation of church and state.

Now I'm pretty much convinced that Penny Lane is a Satanist. Hail Satan Baby!

Occurred to me after watching that though out history if you want to stay in power create an enemy. So if you want your God to be #1 be sure he (she) has an adversary; an anti. One thing religions have in common is obedience - no thinking for yourself allowed.

Admittedly Satan has gotten a lot of bad press/reviews & even stories - print, movie, allegory over the past long while. Thus begins our tale of snake, Eve & apple.

So who/what is the new Satan? Well, they're The Satanic Temple w/small groups totally tens of thousands around the world. One goal is separation of church & state allowing all religions equal opportunity for expression. Another is promoting free thinking. Their tenants include: Compassion for all creatures; justice should be foremost; each of us commands our own bodies; respect other's freedoms; science factuality should be a part of your beliefs; mistakes are correctable; compassion, wisdom come first.

The Satanic Temples main adversaries come in the form of Fox News & Catholic Church (their record w/wars, gays, females, trials, priests & kids - not so good). One of Fox friends' vitriolic arguments is that our currency & pledge both reference their God as our national religion, but the Constitution purposefully stays away on that subject. God was added around the accusatory McCarthy era '50s as a counter to Communism.

It was repeatedly suggested in the doc that they should all (as non-Christians) go to Hell, but would that include Gandhi?

Worthwhile, and amusing documentary about the Temple of Satan, a group that has given atheism a religious footing and which especially fights for religious freedom and secularism in the USA. The movie also provides insights into Christian fundamentalism in the USA... which is perhaps not so much an issue in other parts of the world (but you never know what may happen once the * hits the fan). The church of satan tackles these issues by holding up a mirror, always tongue in cheek, but with an impressive consistency. The movie's message is: cool down folks, there will always be people with different opinions.

It's frustrating to watch these free thinking and harmless people, fail after fail in their every attempt to convince people theu are NOT violent and on the plus side; they all love theatrics, how cool is that

Good insight and the representation of the cultists is objective which helps with honesty. I would have liked to know more about the individual Satan worshippers in the film, more history about them.

I'm impressed. I thought this was a joke but it really opened my eyes. Give it a shot, you'll be surprised and possibly shocked at what you believe in.

The documentary is good, the subject is great but the protagonists are.... I don't know, they can be so many things to so many people. As a Satanist ("traditional" as some like to call us) I find this philosophy of The Satanic Temple way too fluffy, and I see them as confused people who are trying to fit in somewhere. They are certainly a new "Church of Satan", a continuation of LaVey's modern Satanism, only more political. They did things and/or tried to do things very respectable, and many times they were very good at doing them, with lots of maturity and responsibility, but trying to be too nice or being too nice is getting away from the Satanic philosophy, even away from LaVey's tradition. They are to satanism like wicca is to witchcraft. And, like with most satanists, the knowledge of the occult or of religion is quite limited. Lucien is definitely a very charming person, he has the position of a leader but too soft for Satanism. Jex is getting closer to what Satanism should be like, and that is "straight in your face, with no pretty things and excuses." All in all, it's a decent documentary. The director did the best possible with this subject and team.

I am most familiar with LaVey's version of things but enjoyed watching TST's call to action and fighting religious discrimination. And generally I also appreciate educating people about the prevalent form of Satanism. It's a little hokey at parts for me, with people really being kind of silly with the masks and whatnot. But the main reason I knocked a couple stars off is because they didn't mention or otherwise adopt Ghost as the official band of the Temple. (haha)

The Church of Satan: saving us all or sending us to hell??? Worth the personal pondering about; for me as a filmmaker i just like how they made a wonderful documentary out of it, maybe the best around the widely spread concept of Satanism ever.