The Witch (2015)

Two Geeks and a GIT Classic Movie Reviews

Our second folk horror film comes from right at the edge of our timeline, but is a perfect example of the resurgence of Folk Horror seen in the U.S. and the UK in the last decade! Written and directed by Robert Eggers, 2015's "The Witch" follows a 17th century family exiled from their community for practicing a form of Christianity the rest of the town disapproved of. William (Ralph Ineson), the father, and Katherine (Kate Dickie), the mother, leave with their children, eldest daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), eldest son Caleb (Harvey Scrimshaw), the twins Joseph (Lucas Dawson) and Mercy (Ellie Grainger), and infant son Samuel (Axtun Henry and Athan Conrad Dube) for a life alone in the woods. Struggling to raise enough food for the winter, the family has also a few chickens and a few goats, including a large black billygoat named Black Phillip. They believe a witch lives in the woods nearby, and the children are therefore forbidden to enter. After Samuel is taken, supposedly by wolves, the family's fortunes start to sink, and the members of the family begin to turn on one-another, as witchcraft becomes the primary reason blamed for all that befalls them. Ultimately, Christianity cannot stop the forces that are conspiring against the family, and they must confront the reality of their situation, even when that reality contradicts their strongly-held beliefs! Plus, the trio reveal which two horror comedies will make up the next pairing!