[three-star-rating]Ralph Ineson, Anya Taylor-Joy, Kate Dickie, Harvey Scrimshaw[/three-star-rating]
It’s easy to sense the research and commitment that went into the horror movie The Witch, the debut full-length by NYC stage talent and shorts director Robert Eggers. The flick – set in 17th-century New England – follows a Puritan family thrust out into the wilderness, where they battle evil forces that come from the gnarled woods around them.
Alas, the sum here is more mood than sense. By the end, all the dark foreboding, meticulous academics, commentary on fundamentalism, and self-flagellating religiosity has less witchy magic. It devolves into gory absurdism.
Ineson portrays William, the very pious patriarch who challenges the Christian plantation his family dwells in. The council banishes him and his family to the creepy, shadowy woods. There, William, his dour wife (Dickie), his pubescent daughter (Taylor-Joy), and the rest of his brood try to make a go of it. What they don’t know is that the plot of land they choose to rebuild their life in lies very near the hidden dwelling of a creepy wood witch…or several…or something nefarious.
The first sign of trouble is when their baby suddenly goes missing. The family tells themselves that a wolf must’ve come out of forest and stolen the boy. The mom is distraught, blaming her eldest daughter, who was supposed to be watching the child.
One of the most beautiful things is that this family is flawed, even for all their devoutness. It’s also clear that their faults and beliefs are being exploited by evil. Unfortunately, this also sets up that the inevitability of the story. We wait with bated breath not to see what happens, but how it happens.
Writer/director (and I could say researcher) Eggers does his homework and creates a great mood. His detailed exploration into the terrible folktales that scared early settlers is eerily accurate. His timing within the early scenes is perfect, creating dread and suspense. The Witch has the grim look of an old stereoscope.
However, the seams also start to show early on. Whenever someone horrible happens – instead of seeing how the family responds – Eggers fades to black and comes back in hours or days later, robbing us of some of the best human reactions the film could offer. He does this trick so often that it becomes frustrating. Characters and plot points that are later vital are initially glossed over. Finally, the suspense in The Witch is ratcheted up for so over an hour, so that the last few scenes are ridiculous, rushed carnage. More thought is given to tying together several gory folktales than to actual character arc. When the finale happens, we’re left wondering why these people did what they did.
From a theological standpoint – and Eggers’ film seems to invite this – there is also the question of why their God so abandoned the family to Satan and his minions. Sure, William’s kin are all damaged goods, but even they say that grace might save them. Grace never makes an appearance.
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What does make a showing is some fiercely committed acting. As the first son, Scrimshaw is confused and noble. As the parents, Ineson and Dickie may be no more than archetypes, but they diligently and energetically portray them, replete with thick Puritan accents and language. As the focal point, Taylor-Joy may not be given a logical progression. However, she fills each scene with teenaged confusion, guilt, and strength that it casts an effective spell, rescuing a flawed film.
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