7.7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
A devoutly Christian family in 1630s New England struggles to survive living along the edge of a vast wilderness. When one of their five children goes missing and their life-sustaining crops fail, they fall victim to paranoia and fear as they begin to turn on one another.
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, Harvey Scrimshaw, Ellie GraingerHorror | 100% |
Mystery | 34% |
Psychological thriller | 30% |
Supernatural | 29% |
Period | 8% |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 1.66:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English SDH, Spanish
Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (2 BDs)
Digital copy
4K Ultra HD
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Note: The Witch was released on 1080p Blu-ray
almost three years ago, and rather than repeat what has become almost my series of blog postings about Lionsgate’s patently odd choices for its
4K
UHD re-releases, I’m simply providing my original review. Also please note that the 4K UHD disc ports over the same audio and supplements as
the 1080p Blu-ray, so those sections also mirror the original review.
We reviewers have learned the hard way that it’s often dangerous to review a film with any religious leanings whatsoever, as it’s virtually
certain you’re going to end up offending or alienating someone who either doesn’t agree with the religion being portrayed, or how a particular
reviewer reacts to that portrayal. And so let me just begin this review by apologizing to any and all Puritans who may read it and who are
probably already taking umbrage that anyone would deign to assess elements of their faith, at least in how it’s portrayed in the riveting if
intentionally small scale The Witch. This pastoral horror story, given the subtitle A New England Folktale, reminded me in a way
of The Wicker Man, with an atavistic, agrarian society
attempting to ferret out signs from the Divine in the workings of Nature, not always to felicitous results. The Witch plies a somewhat
familiar 17th century environment, albeit with a spooky supernatural air wafting through the misty woods, and that “folktale” element tends to
(perhaps ironically) give the film a rare feeling of authenticity, as if some long ago banished history had suddenly sprung to life and been
reenacted for the edification of the audience. The Witch doesn’t really traffic in standard horror tropes like jump cuts, booming LFE or
even outright signs of graphic gore (there are a few disturbing images in the film, but they’re relatively restrained, at least within the context of
much contemporary horror cinema). Instead, much like The Wicker Man, there’s a slow but steady accretion of angst that ultimately
creates a very discomfiting mood, one that becomes increasingly hard to shake as the intentionally minimalist story proceeds.
Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080p Blu-ray.
The Witch is presented on 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 1.66:1. This is in some ways one of the more
fascinating films I've had the opportunity to assess in 4K UHD, simply because the stylistic conceits that are employed would seem to (perhaps?) be
antithetical to some of 4K UHD's big "calling cards", namely increased resolution and highlights courtesy of HDR. As I mentioned in our original The Witch Blu-ray review, this Arri Alexa captured piece offers
generally excellent detail levels, and an often smooth, sleek appearance, but it's also been very aggressively graded and desaturated, to the point that
large swaths of the film almost look like black (or perhaps more appropriately, gray) and white, with only selected sections of the frame
offering much in the way of hue. While the gray and blue tones that I mentioned in my review of the 1080p Blu-ray version are still very much in
evidence, and arguably not that much altered by Dolby Vision, there are some really interesting new beiges and tans noticeable in such
moments as the early scene introducing two of the focal children. In terms of the blue gradings, some scenes here approach a lighter teal tone than is
in evidence in the 1080p version. Selected brief moments, as in one of the first outdoor scenes where just a hint of rosy pink tones are noticeable in
the sky, do have a somewhat more vivid appearance in this version, but not by leaps and bounds. There's a really interesting moment at circa 7:30,
where you can kind of make out something happening to a baby, and this is arguably the only moment in the film that approaches a
"natural" looking palette, and it's perhaps salient to note that this scene plays out in near darkness (see screenshot 5). Despite the lack of intense
saturation, detail levels are often quite impressive, and "little" items like the fibers on the knit cap that Caleb wears are precise looking.
Don't expect any ear shattering effects in The Witch's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 presentation, which is not to say that there's not some good low end and very evocative use of the surround channels in helping to aurally detail a seemingly possessed landscape. When the kids get out into the woods on a couple of occasion, there's some really well done immersive elements, especially as their imaginations (perhaps) take over. This is a subtle mix for a horror film, though, one which creates its spookiness out of seemingly mundane elements like breezes wafting through the trees or the plaintive cries of farm animals. While there's no fidelity issue with regard to dialogue, occasionally actors can be a bit hard to decipher, which may cause some listeners to opt for the optional subtitles.
This is a film where things don't exactly go "bump" in the night, tending to whisper menacingly instead. That means those wanting a gorefest with horrifying imagery, jump cuts and shock LFE are going to be mightily disappointed by what is a remarkably "quiet" feeling horror film. For those attuned to The Witch's almost dreamlike (and/or nightmarish) ambience, though, the film offers a completely unsettling mood, along with fantastic production design and some very naturalistic performances, especially given the built in "folktale" element of the story. While technical merits are strong, this film's stylized cinematography intentionally deprives the image of both intense saturation and (at times at least) fine detail, both of which might tend to work against perceptions of what a 4K UHD "upgrade" should offer. That said, this is an absolutely fascinating film to watch in its 4K UHD version for those very reasons. The Witch 4K comes Highly recommended.
2018
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Includes Director's Cut on Standard Blu-ray
2019
Limited Edition | Remastered
1960
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Unrated Director's Cut
2011
Unrated Director's Cut
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Standard Edition
1985
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1968
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2001
2013
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2018