Years ago, I remember watching The Wire for the first time and quickly realizing that I would never be able to watch a network procedural ever again. Law & Order, CSI, Cold Case, Blue Blood, etc - they all paled in comparison to the "real" thing; a show so well done, explicit, and unrelenting that the fairly inauthentic, milquetoast world of network cop shows would never suffice again (not that I ever really watched any of those shows in the first place, but still).
Well, tonight, after watching The Witch, I just experienced that same realization again.
Except this time, in regards to the horror genre.
The Witch is so enthralling, unique, and brilliantly executed that I don't know if I'll be able to take another run-of-the-mill horror movie seriously ever again. Granted, I've never been a huge horror fan to begin with, and I can't remember the last horror movie that didn't make me roll my eyes - so take this with a grain of salt - but The Witch may very well be the best horror movie I've ever seen. It's that good. And that haunting. There is some seriously freaky sh*t in this movie that I will never be able to forget. And because it's all so insanely well done and well acted, I don't know that I necessarily want to. I was constantly as marveled as I was terrified.
That said, just like The Wire, The Witch definitely isn't for everyone. It moves at a very deliberate pace, is ripe with 17th century dialect, and doesn't go for cheap jump-scares. But what it does do frighteningly well is continually build a sense of dread - by subtle yet unrelenting means - until everything comes bubbling to the surface in one hell of a creepy and effective ending. Really, it's February, and this may very well be in my top ten at the end of the year. Considering the subject matter, along with the "controversy" surrounding the film, I'm about the furthest thing you'll find from a Satanist - but no matter your faith/religion/beliefs, there's no denying how phenomenally well done this movie is.
This is also A24's first-ever wide release, so it's debuting everywhere this weekend. For the sake of conversation, I hope many of you give it a shot soon, because I can't wait to hear thoughts from non-critics. I'm sure I've raised expectations impossibly high now, but this is exactly how I feel in the afterglow of this film. Hopefully at least a few of you end up sharing the sentiment.
Well, tonight, after watching The Witch, I just experienced that same realization again.
Except this time, in regards to the horror genre.
The Witch is so enthralling, unique, and brilliantly executed that I don't know if I'll be able to take another run-of-the-mill horror movie seriously ever again. Granted, I've never been a huge horror fan to begin with, and I can't remember the last horror movie that didn't make me roll my eyes - so take this with a grain of salt - but The Witch may very well be the best horror movie I've ever seen. It's that good. And that haunting. There is some seriously freaky sh*t in this movie that I will never be able to forget. And because it's all so insanely well done and well acted, I don't know that I necessarily want to. I was constantly as marveled as I was terrified.
That said, just like The Wire, The Witch definitely isn't for everyone. It moves at a very deliberate pace, is ripe with 17th century dialect, and doesn't go for cheap jump-scares. But what it does do frighteningly well is continually build a sense of dread - by subtle yet unrelenting means - until everything comes bubbling to the surface in one hell of a creepy and effective ending. Really, it's February, and this may very well be in my top ten at the end of the year. Considering the subject matter, along with the "controversy" surrounding the film, I'm about the furthest thing you'll find from a Satanist - but no matter your faith/religion/beliefs, there's no denying how phenomenally well done this movie is.
This is also A24's first-ever wide release, so it's debuting everywhere this weekend. For the sake of conversation, I hope many of you give it a shot soon, because I can't wait to hear thoughts from non-critics. I'm sure I've raised expectations impossibly high now, but this is exactly how I feel in the afterglow of this film. Hopefully at least a few of you end up sharing the sentiment.