The Witch
Dave G

Review by Dave G Patron

The Witch 2015

★★★★★

Rewatched 12 Nov 2022

First things first, here's my tattoo inspired by this film (quite a bit by this poster actually): imgur.io/a/IEFWi4P

So yes, I'm an Eggers fanboy to an extent. While The Lighthouse is probably objectively his best film this is BY FAR my favorite of his so far. The atmosphere and tone are excellent and it's worth the watch for that alone. While I've never found this to be scary or frightening in the traditional sense of what you'd expect out of a horror film it has an ever present, creeping feeling of dread and inevitability that seeps off the screen. The setting and the Old English dialogue help with that as well and adds to the sense that you're watch almost a folktale unfolding before you.

The performances are all great. While Anya Taylor-Joy and Ralph
Ineson are the standouts there isn't a weak link here. Even the child actors for Jonas and Mercy do a good job, even if I can't stand them. I don't think Harvey Scrimshaw gets enough credit as Caleb though, I can't imagine as a kid trying to pull off that final scene of his. Then lastly we have Kate Dickie giving an unhinged performance as Katherine, becoming a completely broken person towards the end.

If you couldn't tell from the tattoo though I also love Black Phillip. I don't know how they got that damn goat to do such a great job, but there are some shots of him that actually feel...expressive. When Thomasin is milking Nora and blood comes out instead and she recoils in fear the shot snaps back to Black Phillip with his head tilted as if to say, "Yeah, that was me. What are you gonna do about it?" It's almost intimidating, even though it's just a damn goat.

The score is excellent, it matches and meshes with the film so well. It's shot wonderfully and looks great. I have no complaints, nothing negative to say, no nitpicks. One of the best horror films of the 21st century and one of my favorite films in general.

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