Gonzo’s review published on Letterboxd:
▶ jvince's Top Films of 2016: #2
Now, this is how you do horror.
You won't find any cheap jump scares and sudden loud noises here. Director Robert Eggers does it the right, and harder, way—through creeping you the fuck out.
With The Witch, Eggers slowly suffocates you with creepiness and terror, delighting in your unease as you witness one increasingly fucked-up nightmare. HitFix isn't lying. Watching The Witch does "feel like we're watching something we should not be seeing."
A masterful exercise in subliminal fear and a nightmarish conjuration of pure evil, The Witch serves up a wicked, Kubrickian brew of haunting sights and ominous sounds. Eggers impresses with such an assured and unsettling feature debut, drawing fantastic performances from Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, and Harvey Scrimshaw and a star-making turn from Anya Taylor-Joy. Heck, even the damn family goat is great. (Black Phillip... Black Phillip... *shudders*)
If one wishes to soil thy trousers and have no sleep tonight (and perhaps several nights more thereafter), then I highly recommend seeing The Witch.
The Scorecard:
Direction: ★★★★
Acting: ★★★★
Writing: ★★★½
Editing: ★★★★
Visuals: ★★★★½
Sound: ★★★★★
Entertainment: ★★★★
Overall Rating: ★★★★
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