“If ’tis a jump scare filled gore fest thou seek, then search-eth elsewhere you must.”

Written and directed by Robert Eggers, The Witch is an excellent time-period film. With an incredible use of natural lighting and a creepy backdrop of an isolated farmhouse surrounded by nothing but eerie woodlands, it gives the viewer a better perspective of what the characters are actually living through.

THE PLOT

Set in 1630’s New England, the film follows a Puritan family who has been banished from their England plantation due to strong, yet confrontational Christian beliefs of the father, William (Ralph Ineson).

The standout performance goes to Anya Taylor-Joy, who portrays the eldest daughter, Thomasin.  Her character seems to struggle with her role in the family and her own personal “demons”.  As she is outside playing peek-a-boo with her young infant brother, Samuel, he suddenly disappears.  This leads to a series of downfalls with the farmland and the family bonds as well, leading to the belief that a “Witch” in the woods has taken the baby and placed a curse on the family.

SHOULD YOU SEE IT?

Overall, I really enjoyed this film. It is somewhat of a slow burn and relies on the atmosphere and creepy score and cinematography to give it that scare factor.  It’s not full of cheap jump scares and gore, like most conventional horror flicks nowadays.  One word of advice, though. I would recommend watching the movie with the subtitles turned on so you can follow the dialog better.  Being set in the 1600’s, the characters speak in old English dialect. The dialog, in my opinion, is important to the plot of the story.  Just take the movie for what it is…a folktale, and I think anyone could enjoy it. More of a drama, than a horror movie, it’s definitely a movie I would recommend!