THE WITCH REVIEWED
“The Witch” continues to improve for me with each new viewing. Examining the nature of religious piety vs. the desire for independence allows for a fascinating look at early American life. So much of this is personified in Thomasina, as her emerging womanhood seemingly threatens the family structure. When the family’s newborn infant goes missing, everything goes to Hell. The twin siblings start singing songs about the family goat, the parents lose their minds and yet Thomasina seems to be cool and collected.
I love it when movies look at tight-knit societal structures and start to unravel threads. Watching as Thomasina emerges from her family into something else is amazing. I won’t delve too deep into what happens, as I don’t want to spoil the film. Suffice to say, it’s an insanely fascinating look at how early American fascination with witchcraft began. At times, it feels like historical drama with only slight fantastical dressing. Then, the goat walks up right and the audiences collectively craps their pants.
I’m blown away that we don’t have more films about weird things happening on the American frontier. I guess it’s why I gravitated so hard to “Bone Tomahawk” and “The Witch” in the last year. It’s such a vibrant environment to investigate the bizarre and learn about humanity. Things like that are why I never trusted shows like “Little House on the Prairie”. Family drama is one thing, but what happens when you’ve been living alone for too long?
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Commentary
- Featurette
- Q&A
- Design Gallery
A/V QUALITY STATS
- 1.66:1 1080p transfer
- DTS-HD 5.1 master audio track