The Last Sin Eater was truly an amazing Appalachian film about Welsh  immigrants who lived in Appalachia in 1850. I borrowed the DVD from the local public library, thinking that it was a sequel to another film that I enjoyed quite a bit, “The Order,” starring Health Ledger. Instead, it is a Fox Faith feature film directed by Michael Landon Jr. based on a novel by Francine Rivers. And what a wonderful surprise!

The film opens in 1830 when Welshmen travel to Appalachia in search of land. It then jumps to 1850 and tells the story of a “cove” of the Welsh who have a truly dark secret to cover. They are apparently not Christian because Henry Thomas, famous for “E.T.,” shows up preaching the gospel. He is harassed and eventually murdered by the “Kai” or king in Welsh I assume. The tale is told from the viewpoint of a 10-year old girl, Cadi Forbes, who has accidently been involved with the death of her younger sister. Her beloved grandmother dies, and the Sin Eater comes to take away her sins before burial. I never knew that there really was such a thing as a “sin eater”, thinking that Hollywood invented it for “The Order.” The acting, scenery, etc. are all superb. The film opened theatrically in Charleston in February 2007, but I didn’t have time to see it.

I will be sure to add it to my official Appalachian filmography published by Goldenseal and posted on my WV/Appalachian film website. One surprise is that the film was shot entirely in Utah. The mountains shown definitely do not look as high as the Rockies.

You should be sure to read the comments on this film from the bottom of the IMDB website since someone involved in the project posts comments on how much better the film originally was - before the violence and some intense scenes were edited out. Also, note that the poster above is NOT a scene in the film…but there are many other great scenes. I think that the great dark secret of the film is one that many communities in this world are covering up…including my own in New Ulm, Mn. where the last Indian uprising lead to the largest mass hanging in human history.

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