The VVitch: A New-England Folktale

Plot synopsis:
The film starts with William (Ralph Ineson), the patriarch of a Puritan family, on trial in 1630s New England. He dismisses those around him as false Christians, and the others claim that he speaks ill of the word of God.In a flashback, William's family includes his wife Katherine (Kate Dickie), eldest daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), son Caleb (Harvey Scrimshaw), twins Mercy (Ellie Grainger) and Jonas (Lucas Dawson), and baby Samuel. They recently moved off their plantation in England to a small farm. Mercy and Jonas frequently play with a large black goat that they named Black Phillip.One afternoon, Thomasin is outside playing Peek-A-Boo with Sam. She covers her face to scare him, but when she looks down, Sam is gone. We cut to somewhere in the darkest part of the woods where a wrinkled hand strokes Sam's body, moments before the creature lowers a knife to his chest. We then see a haggard old woman pounding what appear to be Sam's remains before consuming them. The woman then slowly walks out into the woods.Katherine becomes distraught following Sam's disappearance. The family believes that a wolf took the baby. Caleb goes out to hunt with his father, but first he starts to notice Thomasin's breasts. Out in the woods, Caleb becomes fearful that Sam was taken because he lived in sin, making Caleb worry that he is also leading a sinful life that will lead to his doom.William comforts his son, and they proceed to hunt. William aims his rifle at a rabbit, but the recoil from the shot gets him in the eye, and the rabbit runs away. The two return home to an angry Katherine. Thomasin takes the blame for her father for the two of them going to hunt.Thomasin and Caleb are by the river gathering water. Mercy comes along and accuses Thomasin of being a witch, blaming her for Sam's disappearance. Thomasin plays along with the accusation and starts to terrify Mercy. Thomasin says she is a witch, and that she will get Mercy if she continues to bother her.With a lack of growth on their crops beginning to turn problematic, Thomasin and Caleb venture into the woods. The two are separated from each other. Caleb disappears and comes across a small cottage. From the doorway emerges a beautiful woman (Sarah Stephens). She lures Caleb toward him and she kisses him before grabbing his head with a haggard hand.Thomasin later finds Caleb outside in the rain, naked and scarred. The family becomes worried that something evil is overtaking them. Mercy and Jonas continue to accuse Thomasin of being a witch, to the point where even Katherine appears to believe it. Later, Katherine discusses with William that they should give Thomasin to another family, which she overhears. Caleb is bedridden, and the family prays for him. After a while, Caleb begins to writhe and speak some sort of prayer, while Mercy and Jonas also writhe on the ground as if they were possessed. Caleb speaks as though he accepts that he is about to meet God, and he starts to moan passionately before dying with a smile on his face.Thomasin runs outside to cry in despair. William starts to accuse her of evildoing that led to Caleb's death. She angrily defends herself and states that perhaps it was Mercy and Jonas that made a demonic pact with Black Phillip. William locks his three surviving children in the barn with the goats until something happens. Inside the house, Katherine tearfully confesses to William that she had an affair from which Samuel was born.In the barn, the kids see a pale, nude figure drinking the blood of one of the goats. The creature (a witch) turns around and cackles at Mercy and Jonas, causing them to scream. Meanwhile, Katherine appears to find Caleb sitting in a chair, holding Samuel. She approaches them and takes Sam to breastfeed him, but in reality, it is just a crow picking at Katherine's bosom while she laughs gleefully.In the morning, the goats have been slaughtered, and Mercy and Jonas have vanished. Thomasin emerges from the barn and sees Black Phillip charge at William, impaling him with one of his horns. William grabs a hatchet and seems ready to fight, but he then drops it, allowing Black Phillip to charge at him again and knock him into a pile of logs that crushes him. Katherine comes out and continues to accuse Thomasin, blaming her for the deaths of her family members. Katherine starts to choke Thomasin, who continuously tells her mother that she loves her. Thomasin grabs a nearby blade and hacks at Katherine's face until she is dead.Thomasin quietly walks into a barn and dons a cloak. She later encounters Black Phillip and demands to speak to him. After a brief moment of silence, we hear the quiet voice of Phillip. He asks Thomasin what it is that she desires, and tells her what he can promise to give her. Phillip appears to take human form and walks behind Thomasin, telling her to undress. She does, and she follows him into the woods while naked. In the middle of the woods is a coven of witches, all dancing nude around a fire. The witches then start to float in the air. Thomasin embraces the darkness and begins to float high above the trees herself.

Tags: gothic, murder, violence, horror, insanity, suspenseful

Review:
"The Witch" lives in that territory as a horror movie for cinephiles, not for audiences who love the thrill of a good scare.That's not to say "The Witch" isn't scary; it is.
Writer and director Robert Eggers, who makes his feature film debut, builds his terror with tension drama and mystery, not by creating the pervasive sense that some creepy thing will pop into the frame at any moment.Eggers, a production designer first and foremost, builds his "Puritan nightmare" from the ground up, starting with all the tiniest era-appropriate details in the set, costumes and even dialogue.
Well, until the end, but let's not go there except to say that by then, the realism matters much less.The story follows a Puritan family that leaves its plantation and village over religious differences and goes off to build a home near the edge of the woods.
The story could definitely have gone deeper into distrust and paranoia, but then it might have become too much of a "witch trial" movie.The way the movie ends will draw no shortage of opinions, but without a doubt, Eggers and cinematographer Jarin Blaschke have made an and utterly engrossing film that would be just as effective had it just been a period drama instead of a horror film – from a visual standpoint.
They are forced to move to a farm that feels like it is on the edge of the world, as from the opening the woods that line the farm are presented in ominous fashion, almost creating a character that could serve as the scariest element of the film.
Instead of drawing on historical events, though, it draws on historical folklore -- it's the story of witchcraft afflicting a family, such as might have been told at the time.The characters are a very believable, ordinary family, with the sorts of tensions and problems you'd expect from people living a hard and substantially isolated life after being exiled from the local colonial town.
They also have period Calvinist attitudes, and the storytelling doesn't present an outsider's view of this or offer a modern commentary, but instead it just displays these attitudes and tells a story from the characters' standpoint.Their reliance on period folklore means that it doesn't strictly follow modern horror movie tropes, either.
If people from the 17th Century could make a film about their deepest darkest horrors - it would look a lot like this movie!
The Witch engrosses you in the time and place of its setting, it's a family drama, a horror and a folk tale.
I found "The Witch" to be a generally unnerving film, and one which--though I would not place it in the pantheon of scariest flicks I've ever seen--had some moments that I'll not easily forget.The atmosphere Eggers creates alone is enough to wrench serious dread from scenes other directors would be otherwise unable to make even remarkable.
This is not as much about scary moments or jump scare and more about a family coping with a lost child, and the movie trying to build suspense and just make the viewer feel uncomfortable.
Because of this, I can see why some people will see it as really really slow with not much happening.Some PLUSES for me: - Anya Taylor-Joy (the older daughter) is amazing in this movie and I also think Ralph Ineson (the father) did a good job.
- the score is really really good, there are periods of intense silence and periods of creepy music at just the right times to build tension - the cinematography with nice wide shots combined with the score works really well in most momentsFor the MINUSES: - I felt like the other child's acting was pretty bad and over the top and just took me out of the movie in most scenes where they are the focus (thankfully there were not THAT many) - a bit too slow of a pacing during the first half even for my tasteSo, just like I said in the title, KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GETTING INTO.
The tone and imagery of this film crawled inside me and nestled itself in my mind like no other had in a long time.The aspects of the film (lighting, sound, dialog, pacing, composition) created an atmosphere so real I was no longer sitting on my couch watching, but rather living this inherited puritan nightmare.
This was the result of a director who not only painstakingly researched every aspect of colonial life in the 1630s, but who also executed his ideas with striking confidence.Calling this movie scary doesn't due justice to how truly powerful and intense the horror scenes feel.
This is more of a historical psychological thriller than a Hollywood blood and guts horror film.The film is a loving and accurate recreation of Puritan New England in the 1600s with everything from the language to the sets being authentic to the period.
The best part about The Witch, besides the acting, is the dichotomy between drama and what is actually a surprisingly fast paced and accessible horror movie (with few genre clichés.) The film could be looked at as two separate stories heavily intertwined: the supernatural horror of the woods vs the very real terror of violence erupting within the family, and amazingly this is all done seamlessly, missing no beats and never seeming to give up one for the other.
This is how you make a horror film.+Terrifying imagery+Egger's direction+Invested from beginning to end-Sometimes the dialogue is difficult to follow7.6/10.
I could really tell I was watching a film rather than believing the story and characters it involved.This was the type of film which certainly had the possibility of being great but due to choice of actors, choice of director and the unexciting plot it failed miserably..
If you'd like to see a family simply existing, with about 4 minutes worth of witch related (not full blown witch scenes either) content, go see this.Playing Oregon Trail back in the day was scarier and more psychologically thrilling than this movie.
I myself have enjoyed horror movies my entire life, and although this was meant to be more of a suspense building film it missed the mark completely.
I rarely feel compelled to write a review but I'm hoping my 50+ years of watching psychological thrillers/horror flicks will help save someone from wasting their time on this total silliness.
The Witch, following a family upon their move into the wilderness of 1630s New England, is the debut feature film from director Robert Eggers who embeds the project with an essence of horror not often seen.
While many audiences are busy looking for, or even lazily just waiting for, big jumps and stingers for their scares like most modern movies of the genre, they are missing the creepy details that truly push a slow burn like this film into horror.
The forest, already a naturally dangerous place, is left open to become a supernatural place of folklore where any animal you encounter could be something more and the tall trees creep in close to overcome you.It's a masterful choice to shoot this film in more of a full frame aspect ration, which makes its presentation alone feel old and classic, purposefully dated to a time long since experienced.
I watched 20 minutes of this "horror" and decided that this should lead to my first review on IMDb. reason for this is mostly because the trailer actually looks quite cool and the IMDb rating was around 6.5 at the time and this alone would make people spend money on this movie.
I went to see The Witch based on the intriguing previews, plus the high user and critic ratings on IMDb. What did anyone find the least bit redeeming in this wretched film?Based on the previews I was expecting a frightening, exciting, tense movie about, oh I don't know, a witch!?!?
It's been a long time since a film has made me want to walk out in disgust.I give The Witch two stars because of the acting performances.
The actors and actresses were really doing good jobs with their given roles, despite having a limited script and storyline to work with.There was a really good and realistic atmosphere to the movie, and it definitely seemed like it was quite true to the time period in which the movie was set to take place.
This was somewhat of an acquired taste of a movie by the hands of writer and director Robert Eggers, and I believe that having an interest in the time period and particular aspect of American history that "The VVitch" is set to take place in is a definite must to fully enjoy this movie.One thing that puzzled me was the fact that if you have seen the original trailer to the movie, then you have essentially already seen the entire movie.
Being a huge horror fan, I was really looking forward to watching this film, after the great reviews on IMDb by both Critics & Users .......
The movie had nothing to do with horror, and barely had anything to do with a witch, but was little more than an old world family religious drama.
The twins are stolen by some nasty naked witch, and Black Phillip gets loose...goring their father to death.Now, only the mother is left, and she immediately attacks her daughter...ignoring her own godly premonition...turning against the only one who is left...the only one who is truthful, and good.And there is only one thing you can do when you're getting choked to death...This film is very atmospheric, and does a great job of putting you in a position of empathy with Thomasina- who we are, sort of, experiencing events through.But what really stands out, are the performances.
It's not often I get completely duped and screwed by IMDb ratings, but the 6.8 (especially for a horror film) led me to buy this movie before even first watching (save your judgment, I buy movies all the time before watching and due to a decent amount of research and a pretty good intuition with movies, I rarely get burned).
I look for only a few things in horror movies (I'm an avid fan), A: Logical and interesting story B: at least decent acting C: some feelings of being scared, unsettled, disturbed, something....this movie severely lacked in the most important one....C. Where was I supposed to be scared?
One of the most complex and haunting films to emerge within the past decade, writer/director Robert Eggers' "The Witch" is a troubling fable of religion and fanaticism expertly combined with the trappings of a classic horror story of witchcraft and savagery.
that a witch of the woods may be silently stalking the family.The film is Kubrickian in nature, relying on the slow and methodical establishment of character and atmosphere combined with complex metaphors and symbols to create a masterwork of terror and drama.
Speaking of dialogue, I encourage you to utilize the subtitles because you'll only understand half of the Old English verbiage."The Witch" is a mix of family drama, folktale and horror, coming across as a combo of four films: "The Crucible" (1996), "The Village" (2004), "Blood on Satan's Claw" (1971) and the satanic ritual sequence of "The Devil Rides Out" (ake "The Devil's Bride) (1968).
While the movie's admirable in so many ways, including the fact that it's ambiguous enough to be open to interpretation, it's also generally dull and too unpleasant for my tastes (yes, I realize it's SUPPOSED to be 'unpleasant' to a degree since it's a horror flick, but the third act just gets too ugly and leaves a bad taste).
The last scene of a movie is visually quite strong without being showy, but the punchline feels meaningless beyond saying that darkness prevails; again very generic for a horror film.Strong acting and eerie scenery are the additional highlights, but the finished product is neither scary nor memorable..
I urge all of you who are reading this to just give this movie a chance; it will make you think about all sorts of things (religion, film-making, family, 17th century, corns?) while taking you on a roller-coaster ride of emotions and scares.
The idea that nature is foreign and hostile to man appeals to our basest instincts.I'm not sure I'd agree with Jay from RedLetterMedia that The Witch is the best film to hit theaters in 2016, but it's definitely the best horror movie to come out for a while.
If it wasn't for my partner clinging onto false hope that the movie would get better or have some crazy ending we would have left early.So slow from start to finish at no point did the film grip me.
The script in my opinion was not the right one for this movie, it just builds up the suspense and makes one feel hyper endlessly without any jump scares and it lacked the element of surprise which you would expect in a horror film.
I know what a horror film should look and sound like, and if this film is rated 7.4/10 on IMDb, and Silent Hill is rated 6.6/10, then you must know that there is a clear issue in this regard and it makes you ask the question, who is really managing the ratings and how do they do it?I hope I have been fair in my judgement regarding this movie as I feel I am only telling the truth about how disappointed I am.Thank you.
If you think you are going to see some terrifying horror movie, you will be extremely disappointed as I was.1 star from me since I was bored out of my mind after being so hyped up to actually see a decent HORROR film in theaters.
I wasn't expecting an in-your-face horror movie...I like films which get to my mind more than shocking me with visuals...but I DID expect a coherent story line.
If someone paid me to watch it again I wouldn't.I honestly believe the good reviews were people who were paid to write them, or paid off critics, I bet they gave out gold and diamonds in the review bags, maybe some hard cash too, threw one heck of a review party because the movie I saw was awful I'd give it a -2 stars because honestly if you turned off all the sound ignored the dialogue and fast forwarded thru the violence and the really bad ending, you *might* have a beautiful and sad sense of what it was like to be a pilgrim in the 17th century..
The low score on this movie and equally horrifying reviews is a great injustice for this exquisite piece of art.The movie takes place in 1630's New England the family gets banished from the plantation and have to fend for themselves in the harsh conditions of this brave new world.The story of this film is nothing new, it's mainly based off of folklore that is told during that era.
The Witch is a historical period horror movie written and directed by Robert Eggers in his directorial debut.
I loved this film and I would recommend any horror and movie fan in general who just wants to see a masterpiece, to watch it now..
So boring and over religious.I usually love historical dramas and horror films but it wasn't interesting in the least or scary, just bizarre.
So fake you can't even understand them half of the time.This was billed as one of the great horror films of the year, yet it is boring crap.No horror, no frights.People are just over-thinking this movie to make it seem interesting.
His performance is probably one of the best aspects of this film, other than the lack of great color variety that truly sets the mood for this film.In terms of "horror" films, this movie does not produce many jump scares, and is instead just disturbing in content, making it comparable to films like The Shining or perhaps Rosemary's Baby.
However I must say the acting was really good and so was the camera work but as a movie it's not a a slow horror movie leading to an amazing pay off instead it's a very boring movie about a family getting upset and doing typical family things around that time.
I know that sounds dumb but the moment I seen the first thing causing the family to start their drama I knew immediately where the film was going and since I knew it was boring the entire time.
Despite the movie title this film had not that much to do with the actual witch.
I have watched a lot of horror movies in my time but.
While The Witch is simply that good as to not suffer in quality on this fault's account - I can't help but feel disappointed, as it really was one good ending (not even great, just good and better than the actual one) from being a Horror masterpiece.In summary?
That's my only complaint."The Witch" (or "The VVitch", if you want to mock the marketing) is a splendidly scary film that should be watched by any horror movie aficionado..
In an era when it seems like horror has little more to contribute, here comes a movie that packs a punch comparable to great modern films like The Babadook.It's an undated time when America is barely colonized.
The next- youngest, a set of twins who playfully run throughout the farm, claim to know stories of 'the witch of the wood.' It's laughed off.When I recall to mind great horror movies, I think of moments that catch you off guard, where you as an audience member are generally frightened for what is about to happen.
The performances he draws out of his small cast (especially the children) are remarkable, and at times this feels like a movie that is already a classic in the horror genre.
The witch is a great horror film.
It's dark and disturbing, just what I like my horror to be.BTW, if someone plans to write a negative review on this film or any other for that matter, please do not say "I want this period of time in my life back".