The following text is part of the transcript from a longer video entry in Madhog's Master Presentations review series, currently available on his YouTube channel along with most of his works of criticism.
Year: 2015
Written and directed by: Robert Eggers
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
“The VVitch” is a low-budget horror film set in 1600′s New England.
The real witchcraft in this film is the director’s ability to craft a truly suspenseful and disturbing atmosphere without jumpscares or other such lazy tricks. It’s a masterfully yet subtle direction complimented by nuanced yet intense performances all stemming from a simple yet poignant premise. Allegorically, “The Witch” is a ferocious critique on Christian Puritanism and how its more strict mentality (as in, religious bigotry) lead to isolation and ignorance: the elements that History and Progress tend to leave behind for the sake of an ever-evolving human civilization. These “qualities” are exemplified by the “True” Christian family in the film, specifically the stubborn father, as they are banned from their community for being too inflexible with their own interpretation of the faith - ever by Puritan society’s standards! Inevitably, they set themselves up for disaster as everything a 17th Century’s fervently fanatical farming family could possibly fear turns up to haunt and pick them out, one by one. In that sense, the film works really well as a timeless cautionary tale about the dangers of prideful bigotry, both historical and intimate, religious or otherwise. The fact that it’s subtle and selective about what to show and how to show it, makes its commentary and narrative all the more potent.
To summarize: “The Witch” is really good. Watch it!
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