Not many horror movies combine location, atmosphere, and folklore as well as this does. There are many sequences and images I enjoyed but above all I liked the witch FX, the snowy setting where you can feel the cold air, and the giant mansion and castle settings. The or bright snow during the day contrasts with with the windy nights and the shadows in the big houses. I can't think of many other movies tat combine witchcraft, vampirism, and lycanthropy this interestingly. By the end I was happy there was some payoff as I can't stand folk horror movies that don't actually show you the antagonist and it makes you think it is all psychological. I like mystery, just pay it off and this does. The great ending with a suspenseful followed by some incredible blood and gore elevated my feelings. The score with its use of brass and horns almost sounded like something from a Universal monsters movie and I really enjoyed that as well. Also the poster is awesome and the movie actually lives up to it.
Right away this movie shows one of the images that stuck with me. It starts with a bird eating a horse in the snow. Then it goes to soldier Casper Wosinski (Krzysztof Jasinski) riding his horse home, presumably from a war of some kind. He goes home to find that his wife, Mary (Iwona Bielska) has had an abortion and is dying. He asks for a priest and notices the crucifix in their home has been taken down. As she dies she curses him saying she will always find him. Casper then leaves his estate in the hands of his servant of some kind, Matthew. Before he leaves though Matthew says he must put a stake through her coffin as Mary was a witch. Casper cannot bring himself to do it so Matthew does. Some time later Casper is living alone with his awesome dog when he sees a big wolf wandering around outside. He gets a visit from a servant to bring him to Count Victor (Leon Niemczyk) and his old friend Count Ludwik (Stanislaw Brejdygant). Upon arriving it seems like they talk about fighting some oppressors. There is a subplot about war in this story and I didn't completely understand it because I just didn't understand the terms they were using and I don't know Polish history. If I ever get the Severin collection with this in it I'm sure there's some features that talk more about the setting and cultural stuff in this movie. Anyway, Ludwik is revealed to be married to Julia, a vindictive, domineering sort of woman. She is played by the same actress as Mary! So that actress pulled a Mia Goth here.
The same actress who plays Mary...
...Also plays Julia
The two counts leave Casper in charge of the property, along with the servants and Dr. Goldberg (Henryk Machalica). While they all travel to the manor to rendezvous with someone they show him to be killed. Casper goes back to the house and brings a letter to Julia from Ludwik. Casper continues to see the wolf. A soldier named Otto (Olgierd Lucaszwicz) visits and all of his soldiers quarter in the house. Otto and Julia are shown in a flashback to have a romantic relationship. She is seen feeding wolves meat and shown to enjoy licking Otto's blood after he is cut. Julia frequently shows no interest toward Casper and is shown with Otto a lot. I'm never sure throughout this movie when Julia could have Mary's spirit within her, or when or if she transforms into the wolf which leaves a subtle mystery here.
As I said in my thesis there are so many memorable images and an incredible atmosphere here. The scene where they all stop at the crossroads is great. The wind and the steamy breath adds an atmosphere and you can feel the cold. I enjoy the giant crosses they see, that adds something to it. The part when Casper and the other soldier see the ghost is really cool and it looks like an optical effect of some kind. The scenes during the day, specifically when Casper hunts the wolf is great because it is a good antithesis to most wolf horror movies that take place at night. There are also some awesome surreal moments. Like when Matthew says he has the nightmare about Mary and sees here but you don't know if it is real or not. I enjoy the look of Mary's more decaying corpse over the course of the film whenever she is seen. There is a great scene toward the end where Casper is shown walking the mansion with a gun and the use of shadow with the light just coming from his candle is great. This movie delivers in many ways. Atmospheric, nighttime winter scenes, snowy daytime scenes with the wolf and the big mansions, and the gothic nighttime scenes in the mansion.
Mary's decaying corpse is frightening
Spoiler Section
Casper starts to hunt the wolf one day and seemingly hits it but then as soon as he goes to look he finds Julia riding her horse in the woods. Julia in the red and black outfit is a memorable image. She is shown adjusting a bandage on her hand. While it seems doubtful that she turned back into human from the wolf, you're not entirely sure. You heard the wolf yelp when he hit it but Julia looks as though she has a cut a knife or something. It doesn't check out but the movie never confirms nor denies anything, yet you know the wolf is real because other people have seen it. Eventually Matthew shows up and says everything was fine on the estate until Mary's coffin was distressed and the stake was taken out of the coffin. That is why Matthew has been having nightmares. Eventually Casper teams up with Dr. Goldberg. Casper looks at a picture frame of Mary that turns into Julia. When Goldberg does a witchcraft spell of some kind to put Mary's soul to rest Julia falls ill. That confirms they are one and the same. Goldberg makes a silver bullet with holy water for Casper, which is shown in full. That is when Casper finally goes hunting in the castle for Julia. He finds her having sex with Otto and kills her. The blood squibs are great. He takes a sword and kills the two guards. Some awesome dismemberment here. He then jumps out the window and gets on a horse and gets shot in the back by soldiers as he escapes. It is left ambiguous whether he survives or not. Ludwik returns home and asks to see his wife's corpse which is that of an animal skeleton.
Julia looks striking in the red and black outfit.
This was a satisfying folk horror movie. Instead of being a slow burn set in one location around only one or two people, I found this movie kept things interesting. The twist with Julia and Otto was nice break from the other things going on. The team up with Doctor Goldberg at the end was great. This movie had different elements of werewolves, vampires, and witches I enjoyed. It never seemed to lean firmly into all three though, which I thought was interesting and it leaves some mystery to it. You never fully know if the wolf is real or who it could be. Or if it is just a random wolf. I can't find the score anywhere. It is a great mix of an epic score with something like a noir movie. I enjoyed it.
Rating: 8.5/10
Full movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m98inrbrEtU
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