Good for Her: The Witch
Religious pride leads to one hell of a fall in The Witch.
Wouldst thou like to watch deliciously?
NOTE: Good for Her movie reviews contain a spoiler section. If you want to skip it, don’t read the section labeled Good for Her.
What’s The Witch About?
A family is kicked out of a Puritan New England colony in the 1630s for being too pious. Patriarch William (Ralph Ineson) isn’t worried. He’s confident the lord will provide for such a devout family. So he packs up his five children and wife to build their own homestead in the woods.
At first, all seems well. But then baby Sam goes missing.
In the midst of a game of peekaboo, eldest daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy) loses the boy. As mother Katherine (Kate Dickie), mourns, William and the children try to keep the family going, but their luck has changed.
Their crops rot. There isn’t any food. And suddenly the mother’s rantings about a child being witched sound…plausible. When another child goes missing and the set of twins begin babbling about Thomasin being to blame, things take a turn for the pious little family.
Is Thomasin a witch?
And if she’s not, what the hell is happening?
What Makes The Witch Good?
Three words: Attention to detail.
Director Robert Eggers, who got his start as a production designer, is obsessed with details. So, it’s not surprising that he pulls excellent art references for different scenes. If you’re a fan of Goya, you’ll love some of the shots.
Eggers debut feature film was meticulously researched as well. Even the title (which is The VVitch, technically) is written with a double V instead of a W because the letter was not commonly available in printers in the 1600s.
Most of the dialogue is derived from or lifted from period writing of the 1600, especially first-hand reports of witchcraft/witch hysteria.
This is a double-edged sword sometimes. The language of The Witch can be difficult to follow. It also helps if you have a working knowledge of how witch hysteria gripped people in the time period. For instance, reciting the lord’s prayer was supposed to be test — witches and witched people were thought to be unable to say the full prayer — so it makes sense when the parents become hysterical when their twins seem to forget the words. But the detailed, layered nature of Eggers’ film means that The Witch truly flourishes upon re-watch. You’ll pick up new nuances, turns of phrase, and artistic references each time you screen it.
The movie is also has an excellent cast to back up the historic histrionics. Ineson and Taylor-Joy both give excellent performances. Ineson is a man driven by pride. He refuses help, believing that his piousness will eventually be rewarded. Thomasin is a teenager who is just discovering their might be more to the world than the deprivation-filled life she’s been told to enjoy. Though she’s questioning some thing in life, she’s still a sweet girl who’s put upon by a family that sees her more as a commodity and a maid than a daughter. The film also has some great work from Dickie, who has a spectacular breakdown as the film progresses.
Good for Her Moment
After spending the whole movie combating the false accusations of her family, Thomasin cracks. She must kill her mother in self-defense, then with a sigh, she walks over to the family goat, Black Phillip, and asks if he’s really the devil.
Turns out his is.
Black Phillip offers her a deal: Take off her clothes, sign the book of the devil, and he’ll allow her to live in hedonistic pleasure instead of in pious deprivation. Thomasin takes the deal. She signs Black Phillip’s book, and wanders naked into the wood to join other witches at their Sabbath bonfire.
Apostasy turns to ecstasy as Thomasin begins to levitate, laughing maniacally.
Better the devil you know, than the family who abuses you.
Verdict
A beautiful period film with lots of intricate historical details, The Witch isn’t for everyone. But history buffs who love a slow burn horror will be in heaven with this devilishly good film.
The Witch is rated R and available to stream on HBOMax.
