oyason

THE WITCH is a haunting little opus in which film maker Robert Eggers reaches back into the folklore and living history of the United States to produce a story that's going to stick with you awhile. In this tale, a 17th century Puritan father breaks with his pilgrim forebears over Christian doctrine and leads his family out into an unforgiving section of wilderness which seemingly is also occupied by a blood cult of Wiccans. Things do not go well. That's all I'm going to tell you. But here there be mastery. No jump scares, no blood sloshed from here to creation, no zombies. Just good story telling, an outstanding cast, and some imagery that will have you up staring at the ceiling until two in the morning. That's what the good spook stories do. Best of all, THE WITCH is a bold reach into the grab bag of unique grand guignols that life in this section of the Americas is. It is American as apple pie. And it's going to scare the crap out of you. Enjoy.

GET OUT is outstanding. By now you've heard the premise, a young black photographer decides to spend a weekend with his white lover's family for the first time . What he encounters is to be expected, and also unexpected beyond the beyond. Jordan Peele really gets the horror film, and all its comedic potential. that's all i'm gonna say. You've got to watch this one.

THE BABADOOK isn't for everyone, but it's a special film, one that in its own quiet way seeks to address certain realities via tropes of the horror film. Jennifer Kent is an ambitious director who tips her hat to some of the greats in the genre, Mamoulian, Melies, Bava, Whale, Kubrick. THE BABADOOK is a bold foray into psychological horror, repressed intimacy of women,single parenting, social isolation, child abuse, in a neat little package that she probably managed to crank out for under a million dollars. The movie lags in one moment where the script falls into the trap of explaining something the viewer has had time to figure out. But that doesn't drive the momentum of the piece, which leaves the viewer lots of room to draw their own conclusions as to which reality the characters actually are functioning within. The close of the story is open ended, but not in the over-used "something's gonna go on jumping out the bushes and getting you" standard that has been beaten to death in the ghost story/horror film this last ten years. Again, I think this is a special movie, and I'm looking forward to seeing what Jennifer Kent does next. She is a breath of fresh air compared to many of the so-called film makers who dominate the western film industry, and particularly the horror film. THE BABADOOK is a rare treat, filled with fine pointed grace and craft.