In cinema, witches are traditionally drawn as campy, melodramatic cartoons. They sport wicked noses, grotesque make-up, and shrill cackling voices. But if one were to subtract all elements of broad humor and clichéd corniness and distill the frightening concept of witchcraft, evil, and wickedness to their base essentials, a chilling picture begins to emerge. And such is Parts & Labor’s “The Witch” a spellbinding, absolutely nightmarish picture that will genuinely disturb you and make your blood run cold.
Set in 1630 New England, a devout Christian family is about to be excommunicated from their village thanks to the prideful and arrogant father. The puritan family then makes their own pilgrimage to a set of nearby woods, decamps, and builds their own self-sustaining farm next to a beautiful, but coldly unforgiving landscape. The brief utopia doesn’t last. The woods breathe with a chilly portent and the children are told the area is off limits. But like a subconscious...
