The Witch (2015)

The Witch (R)

"Something VVicked This VVay comes"

In Colonial America, a family is ostracized from their village and forced to live in the dark, deep woods.  Soon enough evil things befall them and as they begin to accuse each other of their sins the evil black truth comes to light in the moody yet cultured The Witch.

First and fore most, the Witch attempts to be a period piece, with all actors attempting the proper antique accents.  The costume and production design maintain this illusion well, and the impending pall of raw supernatural fear that the family's unrestrained ignorance precludes slowly begins to seep into our experience.  Shockingly, there are no morals to preach or symbolic circumstances to glean, but a clean dusky cinematography and naturalistic dialog.  The Witch is a supernatural horror story told in ye olde English style, like one they would whisper in the village about not trusting black cats or breaking mirrors.  The strength of the acting forces you through their world, one without pittance and mercy.  There are many moments, visual and contextual, that shine in the film, however the scene of the mother with the crows alone is one of the best horror moments of the millennium (Kubrick would be proud).  Stylized, realized and altogether well presented without a hint of cheese, the Witch will scratch an itch you may not have known you had, probably with a craggly black finger nail.

7 Black Tom Talks out of 10 (GOOD)