Reviews

A young, beautiful witch moves to a new city in northern California in search of love..does a love spell to attract a man...befriends a woman and seduces her husband...and all havoc breaks loose! Sound like a cheesy 1970s horror flick? It is! In glorious technicolor! This film is downright visionary and beautifully made. Shot in gorgeous 35mm (who does that on a small budget these days?) with a wildly delirious color palette and painstaking attention to detail (well, there are a few modern cars in a few shots, but I forgave that against the rest of the film's visual perfection), this is sure to be one of the most talked about cinematography achievements of the year.

Watching this homage to 1970s horror thrillers is very much like turning on a made for TV movie in 1974 or so: the pacing, the acting styles (somewhat stiff and arbitrary), the camera shots, the music, and the only anachronism I noticed apart from the cars was one character's use of a smartphone. This begs the question: were these anachronistic elements intentional? And if so, what kind of homage are we looking at here? But, the seamlessness of the gorgeous visuals aside, the film is also a fascinating take on neo- pagan spirituality (modern witchcraft and Wicca), with a surpassing amount of insider-derived knowledge of rituals, jargon and trappings. (Ask me how I know...) I have no doubt the film will cause some controversy in the pagan community, mostly due to people taking this as literal narrative and not a form of satirical commentary. Elaine is a fascinating character, at times seeming to be shallow and two-dimensional and at others very intricate and surprising.

There's a great deal of subversive feminist messaging here as well, with clever references to iconic films like THE ACCUSED and THE STEPFORD WIVES, among others. Feminism is a central theme and yet dealt with in a very unexpected manner, seeming to celebrate stereotypes while simultaneously bashing them. I've seen the film a number of times and see something new with each viewing, as it has many layers of complexity. Definitely one of the year's, if not the decade's, most interesting films. A delightful addition to the horror genre.

I AM writing a book on that very subject! The Celluloid Bough: Cinema in the Wake of the Occult Revival.

I agree, this is a wonderful film, it certainly gave me nightmares as a kid. I am not sure it holds up as well as I'd hoped it would. But the basic conceit is fascinating and if anyone decided to do a remake it would probably be just as scary.

I think one aspect of the story that is very intriguing is not just the idea of reincarnation/past lives, but the idea that a young girl could seduce Hope Lange's husband and manipulate him into believing his wife is delusional..

I saw a screener DVD of this, but would love to see it on the big screen. A heartbreaking story of the nomadic peoples of Mongolia being forced to abandon their homes due to a "plague" outbreak among animals. Despite their own herds being healthy, the family who is the focus of the beginning of the film are forcibly moved to a mining town, where their son Bagi, who has visions of his ancestors is forced to work for a pittance. Other nomads have been detained for offenses like playing music publicly. The only food available seems to be potatoes, but there appears to be meat available on the black market, and this feeds speculation that the clearances were not motivated by animal sickness after all. Bagi is arrested and while in the detention center meets a group of young activists who want to rebel against their unlawful imprisonment, and to free the animals they know are still alive. The song they perform is a high point of the film, and adds to an already excellent score and soundtrack.

This story does not have an entirely happy ending, but there is some measure of hope and redemption here. The film's strength lies in its very simple visuals and minimal dialogue, which powerfully portray a way of life that is dying out due to government interference.