Posted by Jonathan Klotz | Published
Amanda Tapping’s role is best known as Colonel Samantha Carter in the Stargate franchise, but after that. Stargate SG-1 after graduation, he went on to star in the original SyFy monster hunting series, A holy place. Like Helen Magnus, she was the head of a worldwide network of secret sanctuaries designed to house, treat, and study “extraordinaries.”
This meant a lot of running after big, scary monsters, which is why the Season 1 episode, “Instinct,” works so well. Filmed in the style of a found-footage horror film, “The Instinct” shows how a single, unusual encounter can change a life, and yes, if you don’t know what’s going on, the entire Sanctuary team just goes completely crazy.
By now, fans have seen Helen’s team in action: Will (Robin Dunne) is the new guy, a psychiatrist and his assistant, Henry (Ryan Robbins) is a tech guy and a werewolf, while Ashley (Emille Ullerup) is Helen’s daughter (who always raises questions as soon as people find out) and the team’s most successful fighter. Seeing them through the perspective of TV weather girl Amy (Rekha Sharma) and her cameraman, Zach (Matty Finochio), turns the ordinary A holy place to look at the experience on its head. After the two watchers wander through a warehouse that holds a strange phenomenon inside, they learn about the world of fairy tales and monsters that surround them, and while Zach is impressed, Amy thinks this is the story that will make her life’s work.
“Instinct” opens with two groups running towards each other and trying to find a way to get along as Amy tries to get answers about the Sanctuary from the group, and Zach wants out in one piece. In one of the best moments, Zach is trying to listen to the group using the camera, when he hears Helen say that the monster is behind him. Lumuthi gave up fear and turned around without seeing anything and turned back and Hlengi reprimanded him because he was listening.
After learning that the oddity is an ancient Japanese soft beetle, they calm down until the lights go out, and we get a horror movie shot of the oddity lurking in the dark, over Helen’s shoulder. The excellent steadicam shots make “Instinct” look unlike any other episode of its kind Holy place, and the episode made the most of it in terms of jumpscars whenever possible.
The Sanctuary Was Before Its Time
A holy place he was often shot in a large, open studio with no real sets. Those were added digitally later. For “Instinct,” the crew used a Volvo warehouse, which gave the episode a cramped, claustrophobic feel. Shot on purpose to look like a single, continuous take, the episode was actually 40 long shots strung together, but if you’ve seen any found footage, you can tell where the episodes take place.
Although the series ran for four seasons, A holy place it stayed under the radar the whole time, which is a shame, since it includes one of the most unusual versions of Tesla, a vampire in the world of the series, and the best Jack the Ripper (Helen’s husband). As expected in a show featuring Amanda Tapping while moonlighting Stargate Atlantisthere are many references to that franchise, including Michael Shanks making a guest appearance, and with “Instinct,” the ARG prop is repurposed as a sound gun.
A holy place the level of quality varies greatly from season to season, but “Instinct” is an early highlight of the show before it loses itself in its mythology. Paying taxes Cloverfield it gave fans a chance to see the group differently and to have fun seeing how Helen’s explanations behind the unusual sound when taken out of the context of the Sanctuary itself. If you’ve never given the show a chance, watch it on Tubi and let the classic Canadian sci-fi experience wash over you.
