Most of the fiction I've been exposed to involving Puritanism and witchcraft has revolved around the idea that the hysteria surrounding witchcraft in the New World birthed a greater evil than any actual witchcraft ever did. What Robert Eggers' debut film does so masterfully is blend the human frailties that come to the fore when witchcraft-related hysteria emerges with a palpable, thick and dread-filled evil that soaks into the entire film.
Much has been written of the lengths Eggers and his crew went to to ensure historical accuracy and they certainly do a magnificent job of creating an ambiance that never allowed me to relax while watching. The characters speak in quasi-Biblical tongues, their hair lank, their countenances sullen. It's a hard life they've chosen for themselves and it's made all the harder when Samuel, a baby, disappears.
The titular witch is used sparingly and two of her three appearances are images that will stay with me for a long, long time. Eggers does well to find a balance between not showing too much and showing enough to suggest a horror beyond what's shown directly: blood and fat, pale moonlight on gnarled skin, a weathered hand.
The cast are all extraordinarily committed and I admired just about every performance in the film. I was especially impressed by Harvey Scrimshaw - he perfectly plays a young man on the cusp of adolescence, questioning himself, his religion and the environment around him. The ensemble scene around him while he suffers from possession is the high point of the film and this is in no small part because of his staggering performance, veering from thrashing in the throes of a fit to religious ecstasy.
There was one point in the film where I was given a fright outright but what's so effective is the atmosphere of dread that's slowly and carefully increased throughout. I've been thinking about the film for days, and I'm sure I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come. Many commentators, on the site and others, were sorely disappointed that it didn't reflect the more prevalent trends in horror at the moment but I'm glad that this film has carried on a tradition of horror that seeps its way into your consciousness and stays.
A fairly straightforward and faithful adaptation of the stage production, Schumacher does a commendable job of bringing the musical to film. Perhaps it says a lot about how atmospheric the stage version is already, with the only real advantage here being in the ability to expand locations beyond the stage. Schumacher does add to the backstory a little and the opening scene from the stage is expanded upon to form a framing device that cleverly breaks up the different acts of the film. The biggest failing is it rarely overcomes the theatrical feel and Schumacher's choice of shots and composition are a little flat and stale for a genre that really needs a sweeping cinematic visual style. Ultimately however, the film stands or falls on the music and much of your enjoyment will depend on both the songs themselves and the performances of the central trio of characters. It may be well over 25 years old, but the historical setting of the film means the music has aged well ( perhaps with the exception of the title song, but this still fits the Gothic darkness of the particular scene ). This is certainly one of Lloyd Webber's best covering sweeping romantic songs to comic interplay between the cast. The film production gets so much right, from fantastic costume and set design, beautiful lighting and cinematography. Both Gerard Butler and Patrick Wilson are surprisingly good as the male leads vying for the affections of a young opera singer thrust into the limelight, though Butler's voice does occasionally lack the presence such a role requires. And there is some great support work from Minnie Driver and Miranda Richardson. But it is in Emmy Rossum that the filmmakers have struck gold - the central role of Christine is one that makes or breaks the stage production and Rossum absolutely nails the part - her rendition of Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again is stunning and her performance itself makes this worth seeking out as an alternative to the stage version.
