Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief (2015) - Alex Gibney

Based on the book by Lawrence Wright, Alex Gibney's Going Clear provides an intricate look into the Church of Scientology through eight former members, as they detail their experiences with the "church" and what they were willing and forced to do in the name of religion.  Starting from the beginning, Get Clear documents the creation of Scientology by founder L. Ron Hubbard, documenting the meteoric rise of the religion fueled by Hollywood 'A' list actors and one-percenters, to where it stands today - a "non-profit' billion dollar enterprise.  Apologetically one-sided in its view of Scientology, Alex Gibney's film meticulously details how Scientology was created on the whims of a man in Hubbard who may have been paranoid delusional, with Scientology being a religion that could be used for financial gain.  The film paints a convincing argument that Hubbard drove himself towards insanity due to Scientology, becoming to believe that he himself had a "Thetan", an immortal spiritual being trapped inside him. Using the founder in Hubbard as a paramount example of the dangers of the Church of Scientology, Going Clear exposes how the church's promise of a better life, fueled through success and money, because to become a psychological crux to individual, as they become psychologically attached to the idea that Scientology is the only reason they are being successful.  Scientology prays on the hopes and dreams of people they indoctrine, with Going Clear being a poignant study of the darker psychology of faith and religion, showing how Scientology took advantage of the weaknesses of others, building its empire on false promises and fear.  Incendiary and intoxicating, Alex Gibney's Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of believe is a provocative story of exploitation by the Church of Scientology, painting a convincing portrait of an organization only interested in power and money, not people. 

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