Directed and Written by : Robert Eggers
Starring : Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Harvey Scrimshaw, Kate Dickie
Release Date : February 19, 2016
I feel like I need to warn people into what they are getting into if they plan to watch "The Witch." This is absolutely not your typical modern scary/horror movie, that are designed to attack you with a bunch of jump scares, or shock you with violent gore. In fact, some people might find this extremely boring and uninteresting. This movie is a very slow-burning period piece based in 1630 New England, about a puritan family who experience a series of unfortunate tragedies that seem nefarious in nature. Maybe saying that this is an "art-house-horror" film would help describe what kind of movie this is.
Although this will only appeal to a very particular type of audience, I have to give Director/Writer Robert Eggers a lot of credit on his vision for this film. The pacing, the choice of camera angles, the haunting imagery, the musical score, the tone, all together help give this movie that unsettling feeling of suspenseful dread. Because of the fact I actually wasn't sure where the story was going, it also gave me an unnerving feeling, but also kept me glued to the screen in anticipation to what's going to happen next. There's a point in the movie when the whole situation goes from bad to worse, and then just keeps building up and building up to the horrific. Fascinating stuff.
The cast of actors here are fantastic and deserves praise for their work. From the eldest daughter played by the captivating Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson as the prideful father, Harvey Scrimshaw as the conflicted son, to the distraught mother played by Kate Dickie. They even had to speak their authentic-to-that-time-period dialogue, which unfortunately meant that I only truly understood about 70% of what was said, and that proved problematic as it made it seem like I was watching a foreign film that lacked the English subtitles.
It may not be heavy on special effects or easy scares, but "The Witch" was big on things involving faith, ignorance, temptation, fear, anxiety, paranoia, hypocrisy, plus an unraveling religious family. The movie didn't really scare me out of my mind or anything like that, but I was thoroughly creeped out by the time I got to the end credits.
lovedit ENJOYED IT itsokayitsmehitsterrible
