Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
In 1630, a farmer relocates his family to a remote plot of land on the edge of a forest where strange, unsettling things happen. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, each family member's faith, loyalty and love are tested in shocking ways.
The Witch is a striking debut from Robert Eggers, distinguished by its meticulous period authenticity, genuinely unsettling atmosphere, and commitment to psychological dread over cheap scares. The cinematography — desaturated, flat-lit New England landscapes — is exceptional, and Anya Taylor-Joy's breakout performance anchors the film powerfully. Its folk horror conception feels singular: drawn from actual 17th-century documents, the film builds dread through religious paranoia and isolation rather than conventional horror mechanics, earning high novelty. The plot, while deliberately slow-burn, can feel thin and underdeveloped in its middle section. The ending, while tonally satisfying and memorably bold, will divide audiences and feels slightly abrupt rather than earned through accumulated narrative logic.