Funny Farm

Rating: Null/10 (22 February 2016)

William and his family have to find a place to live after they are banished by the elders, and find a spot in the New England wilderness at the edge of a forest. Little do they know that the forest is inhabited by a witch (what are the odds, huh?). Anyway, strange things happen in and around the farm. Since they are Puritans they can't figure out what could be wrong, since they are extremely religious and obey God's commandments. So they search for an answer.
"The Witch" is well acted and pays great attention to detail, and to outward appearances recreates life on an early 17th century farm. The family's speech is sprinkled with 'thee's' and 'thou's', and, although the film is in color, it is washed out to lend the feeling of austerity and adds to the bleakness of the landscape. I thought Kate Dickie, who plays the mother of the piece was outstanding. Not sure if they give Oscar noms to actors in indies of this type, but if so, she would qualify. I also wonder if life on a 17th century farm was as lethargic as depicted here.
"The Witch" is more of a melodrama than a horror film but there are a few scary moments. Speaking for myself, I get tired of trying to connect the dots of this type of movie, where you must chalk up natural aberrations and illogical circumstances to The Supernatural. The picture contains the usual defiance of reason which has no explanation except whatever you assign to it. And so you make a colossal effort to suspend your disbelief to make it all work. This is the second horror movie in a row for me, having seen "Southbound" last week. "The Witch" has better production values but "Southbound" was more entertaining and moved at a quicker pace.