A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic and possession.A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic and possession.A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic and possession.
Daniel Malik
- Black Phillip
- (voice)
- (as Wahab Chaudhry)
Viv Moore
- Lead Coven Witch
- (as Vivien Moore)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to cinematographer Jarin Blaschke, the film was shot mostly with available and natural light.
- GoofsThe desperately poor family is shown eating by the light of multiple candles. Candles were extremely expensive in colonial New England and would have been used very sparingly.
They're not that desperately poor. They have a horse, goats, chickens, some kind of sawmill to have sawed boards for their buildings. Although wax candles were expensive, they could make bayberry candles cheaply.
- Quotes
Thomasin: Black Phillip, I conjure thee to speak to me. Speak as thou dost speak to Jonas and Mercy. Dost thou understand my English tongue? Answer me.
Black Phillip: What dost thou want?
Thomasin: What canst thou give?
Black Phillip: Wouldst thou like the taste of butter? A pretty dress? Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?
Thomasin: Yes.
Black Phillip: Wouldst thou like to see the world?
Thomasin: What will you from me?
Black Phillip: Dost thou see a book before thee?... Remove thy shift.
Thomasin: I cannot write my name.
Black Phillip: I will guide thy hand.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Film '72: Episode #45.3 (2016)
Review
Featured review
Summary:
This is a story set in the early colonial period of New England. It has the authenticity of a well-researched historical drama, up to and including dialogue delivered in a period accent and vocabulary (softened a bit so that it's easy to understand). Instead of drawing on historical events, though, it draws on historical folklore -- it's the story of witchcraft afflicting a family, such as might have been told at the time.
The characters are a very believable, ordinary family, with the sorts of tensions and problems you'd expect from people living a hard and substantially isolated life after being exiled from the local colonial town. They also have period Calvinist attitudes, and the storytelling doesn't present an outsider's view of this or offer a modern commentary, but instead it just displays these attitudes and tells a story from the characters' standpoint.
Their reliance on period folklore means that it doesn't strictly follow modern horror movie tropes, either. It has the slow build of a modern psychological horror/thriller as well as the standard formula where tragedies start from tragic flaws, but the traditions it's drawing on depend on a Calvinist's conception of flaws, and treat witchcraft as a horrible, well-understood occurrence rather than a shocking supernatural surprise. This story applies these perspectives.
It's very well done in terms of writing, acting, and other aspects of execution, so it might have cross-over appeal to fans of horror, folklore, or straight period drama from colonial America.
The characters are a very believable, ordinary family, with the sorts of tensions and problems you'd expect from people living a hard and substantially isolated life after being exiled from the local colonial town. They also have period Calvinist attitudes, and the storytelling doesn't present an outsider's view of this or offer a modern commentary, but instead it just displays these attitudes and tells a story from the characters' standpoint.
Their reliance on period folklore means that it doesn't strictly follow modern horror movie tropes, either. It has the slow build of a modern psychological horror/thriller as well as the standard formula where tragedies start from tragic flaws, but the traditions it's drawing on depend on a Calvinist's conception of flaws, and treat witchcraft as a horrible, well-understood occurrence rather than a shocking supernatural surprise. This story applies these perspectives.
It's very well done in terms of writing, acting, and other aspects of execution, so it might have cross-over appeal to fans of horror, folklore, or straight period drama from colonial America.
helpful•236127
- avdropm-944-921852
- Mar 2, 2016
Details
Box office
- 1 hour 32 minutes
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