Movie of the Decade

The VVitch

2015

D: Robert Eggers

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Pros: Atmosphere, Themes, Acting, Plot

Cons: One Unsuccessful Jump Scare

     When there are so many deconstructions of classic horror tales, it’s refreshing to see one that plays it straight.  We seem to have lost something in fiction when we’re not allowed to depict transcendent evil.  This movie preserves the mystery of malice as a force that corrupts humanity in insidious ways.  This mystique is lost when everything is explained and subverted.  In contrast, this story is effectively straightforward while being deep and earnest.  It was through RedLetterMedia’s recommendation that I found out about tit, and that goes to show that critics can often turn you on to obscure things when you trust them based on the genres they are strong on.  It’s too bad I missed my chance to see this in theatres.

Then again, Eggers did steal my Double V stylization.

      The story focuses on a banished Puritan family as it is menaced by a witch (Bathsheba Garnett) who lives in the woods nearby. The father, William (Ralph Ineson), attempts to live up to his appearance as a strong patriarch but is an incompetent hunter and farmer.  His wife Katherine (Kate Dickie) seems to resent him.  Both cast members are from Game of Thrones, but it took me a couple tries to finally get over the fact that Ineson was Peter Finch from The Office.  The protagonist is their teenage daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), and their other children include Caleb (Harvey Scrimshaw), twins Mercy and Jonas (Ellie Grainger and Lucas Dawson), and infant Samuel (Axtun and Athan Dube).  This solid cast also includes Julian Richings.

       The inciting action of the plot is when Samuel disappears under Thomasin’s watch.  He is instantly taken by the witch, who kills the child for a potion.  This serves the dual purpose of that and indirectly corrupting Thomasin through the resultant suspicion from her family.  This comes in the form of tension from the parents and gleeful mockery from the twins.  Thomasin’s alienation is exasperated by the pettiness that sometimes erupts between William and Katherine.  A pervasive theme here is the joylessness and hypocrisy of Puritanism. This is not lost on Caleb, who momentarily questions the doctrine of Predestination, particularly it applies to poor Samuel.  He is eventually seduced and killed by the witch in a younger form (Sarah Stephens). The situation comes to head in which a final intrusion on the homestead leaves the parents dead and the twins missing. Disillusioned by her family’s turning on her, Thomasin sells her soul to Satan (Wahab Chaudhry), who has taken the form of the family goat Black Philip (Charlie).  She then joins a coven of witches and feels liberated by her newfound life of hedonism.

       The movie is very well directed.  The atmosphere is enhanced by Jarin Blaschke’s cinematography, and the story takes advantage of the archetypal mystery of the woods.  Mark Korven’s ominous score is also effectively period-specific.  The movie uses animal themes to great demonic effect, but it is helpful that hares (not rabbits, mind you) already look creepy.  It also underscores in a (good way) that having a talking goat does not automatically qualify as humor.  The movie uses great restraint when displaying the witches and the Devil. The only stylistic flaw is an unintentionally funny jump scare (a trope this movie is mostly above) in which the witch suddenly appears in the form of a crazy, cackling old she-coot.

       Unsurprisingly, many feminists found the movie “liberating,” almost as if to prove its point and relevance.  You’d think they’d be clued off that the witches are clearly the villains considering they literally murdered a baby.  Then again, this isn’t the only A24 thriller that had a very similar theme which they missed the point of.  There's a moronic consistency in that these same people also project this onto anyone who recognizes the the tragic villainy of the Joker.  However, I think Midsommar is a far more exploitative movie, which unfortunately might explains why Aster's movies seem to get better releases than Eggers.' The VVitch isn’t the Movie of the Decade just because it’s the best from the time period, it’s also oddly relevant to how society is becoming more actively malicious to the point of being demonic.  I firmly believe that Evil is a force that guides humanity, and without a guiding light people don’t simply default to neutrality.

      One important message of this movie is that the side of good must be welcoming.  It's important to fight evil, but we must also understands what drives normal people to it.  The Purtianism of Thomasin’s family was a bastardization of Christianity that alienated her.  When someone cannot find comfort in what’s right, they will turn toward the alternative, even knowing full well what it represents.  The human need for companionship is too strong, and while we rightfully extol integrity, it’s imperative those of us who fight the good fight must support each other.  Evil knows to take advantage of this; good too often forgets to.  It didn’t help that the Puritan definition of salvation made Thomasin’s choice seem sensible; if benevolent life is miserable and the hereafter is unjust, then one might as well damn oneself.  The benevolent must be prudent if we are to keep people on our side.

And now, for no good reason, here's my favorite Creature Feature song.