hey hey thank fuck organised religious cults are only in fiction ha ha right *sweats*

me: i just want the raid 3
gareth evans: fuck you

first hour is kind of rough, lots of cliche characterization and ugly desaturated, handheld camera work (with no clear indication why its been shot this way until the last like 30m), but this hugely picks up around the time it goes full The Blood on Satan's Claw supernatural cult horror an hour in and then for some ungodly reason caps the whole thing off with 30m of "what if Witchfinder General was a torture porn movie?" unsure whether this is Actually Good or not but the bizarre whiplash of witnessing evans' paranoid, untethered photography and penchant for bonkers gruesomeness infect a 70s british folk horror locale in that finale was enough to get my lizard brain going and forget all the times actors opened their mouths in this. gotta be some value in that, right?

I’m a big fan of slow, brooding, boring, period piece folk horror—rotting soil, vine blood goddess, Dan Stevens, bursts of violence, and an intense third act that sees Mark Lewis Jones channeling gonzo Oliver Reed.

I didn’t really care for either Raid movies, loved by many and that’s awesome, but this is way more my speed... I would have gone even higher but it was a tad long, even for me, purveyor of overlong slogs, but at least it didn’t put me to sleep like Hold the Dark did. When it comes down to it cults and a town covered in vines is just appealing to me? I dunno, I dug it.

I’ll gladly add this to my Folk Horror list.

God is pain... is... suffering... is betrayal.

Welp, there goes my hope of getting any sleep tonight.

Dan Stevens and Michael Sheen performances are terrific, cinematography and music are outstanding and the second half is just fucking batshit crazy.

It's like if The Wicker Man and Brimstone had a twisted baby, who was kidnapped and raised by The VVitch. Just quality Christian entertainment for the whole family.

dan stevens is perfection

Pretty terrible case of overacting through most of this movie. It’s crazy to see these modern day mid budget films. It seems like they are being made just because. I personally think we need just because films and this is one of them. Eventually it will hit and something will become a classic but this is not the one.

Not really scary. Not really creepy... kind of weird but it’s basically a step above the wickerman in terms of movies where the lead actor is trying to blend in with a cult.

Watch on an empty stomach.  #protips

The gore is sparse but effective and when used, does not shy away from how terrifying and grotesque it is. It amps up its terror, building up intrigue and suspense. Dan Stevens looks irked the entire film, which is perfect for his character. 

I love period piece horror films; they tend to be more atmospheric and secluded. This one is no exception. It gives enough explanation to understand the motivation and what’s happening, but it doesn’t over-explain so that there’s no intrigue left.

Takes too long to get to the more unique moments of this movie and earlier on feels like it is  it even trying to be anything but another crazy cult movie. Picks up a bit in the middle and coast to the end. There is some moment of cinamatic flourishes and a memorable sacrifice scene. It’s not fair to hold it against the movie that it isn’t Raid 3 but if we are just talking causally, that would have at least had much more going for it than this.

Gorgeous? And goofy? Loved it.

This was a beautifully shot film, with stunning nature and interesting shots that balanced the bloodshed and darkness in the film. Interesting story and compelling emotional characters. Not for the faint of heart.

why didn’t I just watch a British film from the 70s...it would make an attempt to have an interesting plot and aesthetic unlike this

dan stevens didnt have to go off like that