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Feb 19, 2016 · The Witch: Directed by Robert Eggers. With Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, Harvey Scrimshaw. A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic and possession.
- (308K)
- Drama, Fantasy, Horror
- Robert Eggers
- 2016-02-19
It stars Anya Taylor-Joy in her feature film debut, alongside Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, Harvey Scrimshaw, Ellie Grainger, and Lucas Dawson. Set in 1630s New England, its plot follows a Puritan family who encounter forces of evil in the woods beyond their farm. [8]
- Overview
- Synopsis
- Plot
- Cast
- Production
- References
- See Also
―Thomasin, Mercy and Caleb
, also known as The VVitch: A New England Folktale, is a 2015 folk horror film writter and directed by Robert Eggers in his feature film debut.
A family in 1630s New England is torn apart by the forces of witchcraft, black magic and possession.
Prologue
In New England in the 1630s, a family of Puritans - William, his wife Katherine and their children Thomasin, Caleb, Jonas and Mercy - are brought before the governor of the plantation they live on over a religious dispute. William tells the governor that they left their family behind in England for the pure and faithful dispensations of the Gospels and the Kingdom of God. He declares the elders of the plantation to be false Christians and disputes their right to judge him. The governor accuses him of dishonoring the laws of the Commonwealth and the Church with his prideful conceit. William refuses to admit fault and the governor banishes him and his family from the plantation. William gladly accepts it and chastises the elders one more time. The family leave, with only Thomasin being reluctant to do so. The family leave the plantation in a horse-drawn cart. Some time later, they find fertile land at the edge of a forest where they can set up a farm. They happily join hands in prayer, unaware that an ominous presence lurks within the woods.
Disappearance
Several months later, the family have settled into their new home, acquired several livestock and welcomed a new baby boy, Samuel. One morning, Thomasin prays and confesses she has lived in sin; ignoring her work, disobeying her parents, neglecting prayer and following her own desires rather than those of the Holy Spirit. She begs God's forgiveness and mercy, while accepting the she deserves eternal suffering and hellfire. She later takes care of Samuel while Katherine rests. She takes him out close to the woods and plays peek-a-boo with him. One moment, she covers her face with her hands and when she removes them she finds him gone. She panics, and seeing twigs and small trees swaying as if something has just moved past them at great speed, she runs towards the forest and derperately calls his name. In the forest, a cloaked figure takes Samuel deep into the woods. That night, the figure lays him down on a tree stump and kills him with a knife. She then grinds his body into a flying ointment and smears it all over her skin. Taking hold of a long branch, she floats high among the treetops.
The Hunt
Katherine is so devastated by the loss of Samuel that she does not sleep for several nights and lies in bed sobbing. Early one morning, Caleb dresses early and prepares to go outside. He stares at Thomasin's cleavage while she sleeps, but when she begins to stir, he wakes her tells her to sleep, assuring her that all will be well. As Katherine tearfully prays, he sneaks out of the house and joins William. His father tells him that they can no longer search for Samuel, who will have surely died of hunger by now if he was not taken by a wolf. The crops a rotten with ergot and William tells him that they shall head into the woods to see if anything has been caught in the traps he has set. Caleb is reluctant, as William and Katherine have always forbade him from entering the forest, but William insists that they must do it, as with the crops failing they will need to catch their food. In the woods, William has Caleb recite the concept of original sin to him. They find one of the traps empty and set it again. Caleb worries that Samuel is in Hell due to the fact that he was not baptized and worries that the same will happen to him due to his unconfessed sins. Williams tells him that he wishes he could reassure him, but cannot, as only God knows who is a sinner and who is not. Caleb asks where he got the traps and William replies that he sold Katherine's silver cup, an heirloom from her father, to Indian Thom and Old Slater when last they passed through. He asks Caleb not to tell Katherine this, as she is burdened enough already. The family dog, Fowler, spots a hare with an unusally sharp stare.William and Caleb fumble to load the shotgun and as William attempts to shoot the hare, the gun backfires and sprays gunpowder into his eye. The hare escapes. Back at the farm, Thomasin collects water in a bucket, but struggles to balance it on her head and spills some of it. She goes to collect eggs from the chicked coop, but accidentally drops one and finds blood within. Jonas and Mercy chase the billy goat, Black Phillip, around the farm as they sing a song in his honor. Thomasin orders them to come and help her, but they ignore her. She sits at the edge of the forest, overwhelmed with guilt over the loss of Samuel. William and Caleb return to the farm and discover that the twins have riled up Black Phillip. As Katherine comes out and holds the twins still, Williams grabs the goat by his horns and wrestles him back into his pen. He then falls backwards onto a pile of excrement, prompting laughter from the twins. Thomasin returns and Katherine chides her for not keeping watch of the twins. Thomasin replies that she was and that they would not help her and Katherine orders her to take William's clothes and wash them. Katherine is angry with them for leaving without informing her and Caleb tells her that they were looking for an apple tree. She tells him not to leave the farm again. Thomasin sits by the brook and scrubs William's clothes when Caleb arrives to collect water. He sneaks another glance at her cleavage and when she notices him dallying, she tells him to sit with her and comforts him, wondering what is the matter. They hear a twig snap and are alarmed, but it is Mercy pretending to be a witch. Thomasin chastises her for playing while she works like a slaves. Mercy tells Thomasin that Katherine hates her and that Black Phillip says that she can do what she likes. Mercy accuses Thomasin of letting a witch take Samuel, claiming she has seen the witch herself. Thomasin claims that she was the witch and that she stole Samuel. Thomasin frightens Mercy by telling her that she will eat her and Caleb tells her to stop, insisting that a wolf stole Samuel. Later that night, William leads the family in prayer before they eat supper. Katherine asks Thomasin what she has done with the silver cup. Thomasin replies that she has not touched it, but Katherine does not believe her, even asking if a wolf took it like it did Samuel. The goats bleat outside and Katherine chides Thomasin for not penning them down before supper. Thomasin goes out to the pen and finds the hare in among the goats. In their bedroom, William implores Katherine to get some sleep that night. Katherine believes that God has cursed them by taking Samuel and William replies that He has taken them into a very low condition and show them more of his grace. She expresses regret over leaving the plantation and he replies that they do not need luxuries such as silver chalices. She is angered by this, proclaiming that she does not miss it due to vanity. She tells him that Thomasin he begun to mature and must leave to serve another family. She expresses fear that Samuel is in Hell and that the family will starve due to the failing crops. William tells her that he will take Thomasin to a nearby village in the morning and give her to the Tildens or the Whytings. Unknown to them, the children are awake and listening.
•Anya Taylor-Joy as Thomasin
•Ralph Ineson as William
•Kate Dickie as Katherine
•Harvey Scrimshaw as Caleb
•Ellie Grainger as Mercy
•Lucas Dawson as Jonas
Casting
Casting for the film took place in England, as Robert Eggers was seeking authentic accents to represent a family who had newly arrived in colonial Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Filming
Robert Eggers intended to shoot the film on location in New England, but tax incentives forced him to shoot it in Canada instead. However, this proved problematic as he was unable to find the forest environment that he was seeking. He then began scouting unconventional locations and found a suitable one in Kiosk, Ontario.
1.Valley News - Director Robert Eggers, a New Hampshire native now living in Brooklyn, worked as a designer in television, theater, film and (vnews.com)
2.How Robert Eggers Combined History and Childhood Horrors in ‘The Witch’ – IndieWire
Mar 23, 2018 · When William confines the twins Mercy and Jonas, along with Thomasin in the goat shed for their unruly behaviour, the fraternal twins go abruptly missing, hinting it was the witch’s doing again. While William returns to retrieve his children the next day, two of them are gone and Thomasin has passed out.
Jun 3, 2022 · Mercy, ever ruthless toward Thomasin after she played a cruel joke on her, first implied she was a witch, using her wrath to turn the family against her. Jonas, on the other hand, embodies...
Jun 4, 2023 · This post includes a brief plot summary and an explanation about the ending of the 2015 film “The Witch”. Directed by Robert Eggers, the horror film stars Anya Taylor-Joy as Thomasin, Ralph Ineson as William, and Kate Dickie as Katherine. Beware of spoilers.
Mercy and Jonas frequently play with a large black goat that they named Black Phillip. One afternoon, Thomasin is outside playing Peek-A-Boo with Sam. She covers her face to scare him, but when she looks down, Sam is gone.
