The Sisterhood of Night

This movie is amazing and it a MUST SEE! Young women today are bombarded by so many negative role models and messages and it is refreshing to watch a movie that EMPOWERS young women! This movie tells a story in a wonderful way while showing how important it is for young women to empower each other through the strength and courage of sisterhood! Women of all ages need to see this movie. I'd encourage mothers to see this movie with their teen-aged daughters. There is a lot that can be learned from this movie and it can and has sparked great conversation and unity among young women.

It was an added bonus for me that the movie was filmed and the story takes place in a location that is just 15 minutes from my hometown! It was fun to see various locations that I visit on a regular basis.

Kingston is a vivid, lovely city that certainly created a hometown feel and backdrop which added to the story itself. I know that all of us who shop/bank/live in and around Kingston NY were so grateful to have a movie produced here. There are many shop owners and store employees who had only wonderful things to say about the cast and production staff.

Generally well-made, well-filmed, strong performances across the board, and the story tells you enough to keep you interested until the very end. Yes the story is a bit histrionic in it's emotional thrust, but I would say it is very true to it's teenage age group in that regard, when in that age in life, small things appear to be the end of the world. For the most part, these girls come across as real people, and not caricatures as in so many other teenage films such as: Mean Girls, Easy A, and the majority of the 1980's and 1990's(I like all of these films as well fyi) teenage films where the teen villains are always generally painted as one sided. Here the "villains" are just normal people who are scared or jealous, and most of the time, don't actually want to cause real harm. It delves into #metoo territory before #metoo was really a thing, this was made in 2014. This movie was what I thought the disappointing and morally bankrupt "The Falling" would be.

There are a great deal of coming of age films, and this one stands out among them as not being afraid to show the ugly side, without reveling in it. So many teenage films either gloss over some of the struggles, or just outright glorify them. This film straddles that line, it shows both the highs and lows. It gives a picture of a group of girls who rise above the trivial and petty nature of teenage girls and find a true bond that few girls ever find. It shows how people can feel threatened by those who have found happiness outside of what is normal. It show why people might do things because they want that same connection, and try to destroy the connection of those they are jealous of.

What if you had a group of friends that you knew you could trust to never say anything about your worst secrets? How far would you go to protect that bond? This is a deeply philosophical movie about the importance of having good relationships with people that you can trust, as opposed to people who merely flatter you. It is a movie about not being understood, but being allowed to just be. "Modsommar" actually explores a very similar theme, but that film takes it even further, and with a lot of grotesque scenes, but this film achieves the same overall effect, without leaving you feeling dirty and gross. If you don't mind teenage movies with emotionally teenagers, you might find a lot to like, otherwise, avoid.

~Amy

This movie really hits one in the gut! I thought it was so simply and understatedly beautiful. There was no pretense in this film. I just can't tell how it snuck up upon me and brought out this rich story of unconditional and uncompromising love! Wow! I thought this would a be a good late night B movie thriller. To my surprise I was captivated within the first ten minutes and just couldn't walk away. If there were ever a movie to present the dangers of hurting others out of fear, envy, and pride...this one does this trick. Not only does the message ring true as timely, but this story will most assuredly become timeless. What is done in darkness will come to light. Truth will set one free and on and on. I found more than one sell-able moments that would teach young and old the valued meaning of solidarity unwavering! Check this one out if you have teens or young adults in the home. Sometimes these films get it right and this one is bang on! Get your tissue box ready for the feelings to resonate under director Caryn Waechter and this precious cast of actors! No doubt one of the best beautifully filmed stories of humanity and strength of the persevering spirit.

All references to the crucible aside this is not that. It has nothing to do with the theme of the crucible and the pressure of that closed off community. This is the story of a bunch of 15 year olds who destroy a town and everyone in it because they're cold blooded sociopaths. Maybe the feminist narrative is to call that empowered or a story of how teenagers girls relate to each other in a real way but it's not. These are girls who grow up to be serial killers. They are literally the manifestation of pure evil. I really can't understand why anyone who's seen this movie says they can relate to these girls unless they see themselves as sociopaths to too. And who knows maybe they do. I think they should have set the movie in 1975 Cambodia and had the girls join the Khmer Rouge to wage genocide on their schoolmates. Or maybe 1935 Germany where they grow up to be guards at Auschwitz. Either way I'm sure someone will claim it's a feminist epistle.

Just saw a film festival showing with the director and writer in attendance for a q&a. This is a difficult film to label, the trailer might suggest a 'mean girls as witches' storyline as in The Craft, but this is not a horror flick, there's no supernatural element. It's about female friendships and being true to oneself, there are familiar high school themes of peer pressure, popularity, a dash of cyber bullying, but thankfully none of these are pressed too hard, so it never devolves to a dreary message movie.

You could say the plot uses The Crucible as a rough template, but best to discover the specifics for yourself. The director has a great visual sense, and Georgie Henley is a real find as the lead character Mary Warren, she has a natural charisma and commands every scene she's in. Maybe there are one or two obligatory plot turns, but overall the narrative unfolds in surprising ways and lands with real emotional punch. The director said it will be available on video on demand in April 2015. Worth seeking out.