I don't think I've seen any other movie that immerses you into the ambience of the setting and the geography better. The costumes aren't costumes they are clothing. The woods aren't sets they are a location. I think those distinctions are important. Instead of a more theatrical looking Hammer horror movie that some period horror movies have, this has the feel of an Agalloch album brought to life. There are many different images and sequences that are still in my mind. I have a lot of questions as well. I still am not sure if the witch is real in this movie and if it is who it is. There are supernatural things in this movie that I don't completely get. This movie establishes itself right away through as a movie that has supernatural elements that just can't be real. What is real though is the grounded thematic elements you can find within. The close family that tears itself apart because of a combination of religious doubt and and superstition, and developing sexuality and the temptation that comes with it.
Right away there are two things I want to talk about. The look of the woods and the way Robert Eggers does these quick five second zooms into the woods with both green and gray lighting taking center stage. There is an atmosphere here and sense that something will always be missing. You're never going to see everything in any given shot. That permeates throughout the whole film. When Samuel is taken it is literally impossible for someone else to have come in a taken him without being seen or heard in that amount of time. The first time one of those sequences starts. Robert Eggers has these sequences in movies that I can't explain. The first sequence with Samuel and the witch is reminiscent of the sequence between Willem Dafoe, Ethan Hawke, and Oscar Novak in The Northman. There is so much supernatural and mystic imagery that you just submit to it rather than think about what it means. The music, specifically the not traditional string instruments help add to the ambience. The language from that time is like something out of Shakespeare which I like.
Religion can be interpreted in any way. To me however there are right and wrong ways to interpret such things. During this time religion seemed to be interpreted more negatively and used to spread more negative ideals. There was no black and white. If you didn't follow the same God you were seen as an enemy. If you were accused of being a witch there was not defense for it because someone could find any reason to justify how you could be one. Now there is a supernatural element to this movie so the accusations of witchcraft among this family are actually somewhat well founded. Whether Thomasin is the witch or not doesn't really matter. Because of the family's religious beliefs and William's (Ralph Ineson) control everyone is subject to his interpretation. There is a great scene early on between him and Caleb. Caleb asks about Samuel's fate in the afterlife and because William always says children are born of sin Caleb believes Samuel is in hell. William talks about how it is not for them to interpret. Yet I think everyone should have their own beliefs of such things.
Caleb is seen staring at his sister and is later seduced by the witch in the woods. Thomasin is later locked in a barn with her sisters and we see the witch, but not in the same shot with her. Is it possible she is the witch because we never see them together. Is that story she tells her sister's about becoming the witch who took Samuel true? I'm not sure but there are several things I do know by the end of this movie. The family is torn apart by both supernatural forces and their interpretations of such things. Katherine does not even see Thomasin as a daughter by the end of the story and fully sees her as a witch and a seducer. Yet we saw how William died and how he was killed by the goat that the two younger siblings, Mercy and Jonas had apparently been talking to. Their new song about the goat is more memorable than their own prayer! One image I will never forget is seeing the witch in the corner of the room. It doesn't even look real at first. I remember a time where I woke up in college and threw something at the mirror in my dorm room because for a brief second I aw whatever I saw in my nightmare. Seeing the witch at that point reminds me of that.
Religion back then was interpreted in a more pessimistic and negative way. Thomasin is looking for something closer to reward, purpose, and fulfillment which is what religion is supposed to be. If it was back then that witchcraft gave you that I can't say I blame her for submitting to it at the end. Her stripping and joining the sabbath represents her getting away from such a world of negativity and embracing the stirrings of sexuality and her want just to want things that are separate from her current beliefs. I can't wait to watch this again at some point and see what other images I remember and different interpretations I have. Anya Taylor-Joy is a mesmerizing screen presence as always.
Rating: 9.5/10
Trivia: In the scene where Caleb dies Harvery Scrimshaw was actually directed a lot more by Ralph Ineson than Robert Eggers as Eggers has no children. Ineson has children and works as an acting instructor for children.
No comments:
Post a Comment