DARK & THE WICKED, THE/BD

This was a great horror flick and comes within centimeters of being a legendary horror movie. It's only fault is that it tries to connect what are some extremely well paced, frightening and compelling horror scenes with a metaphor. This seems to be the trend, but the very act of trying to diminishes the film just a little bit from the likes of Hereditary or The Exorcism. That's partially because it's been tried a lot by a lot of other movies, and also because the scares would be better served as building up to a finale which isn't predictably representative of the human emotional condition. Sometimes it's better to let people pick apart a film for meaning than it is to insert one in bold. Also, the only other fault is there isn't enough exposition. There seems to be a trend away from exposition in film making, but a film without exposition is mostly just photography (cinematography if I wasn't being purposefully overly expressive). Exposition is cheap, free and effective. What was this demon, and please don't tell me that naming the demon removes the metaphor because every demon prince is a metaphor while each their stories is a tale of the human condition. Name your demons, tell their story, exposition is cheap use it, save special effects for a dramatic finale and avoid relying too much on atmosphere. If the director follows the above advice in the future he may just become a top horror director.

The Dark and the Wicked (2020), an American horror movie that is probably one of the bleakest horror movies I have ever seen. In a nutshell, two adult siblings, Louise (Marin Ireland) and Michael (Michael Abbott Jr) return to the family farm in Texas to see their dying, bedridden father. The mother warns them away, with the two siblings not understanding that the mother was warning them away because a demon had set up camp on the family farm. In short order people start dying, though not cool thriller run-from-the-monster deaths, but self-inflicted, horrible, gory, gruesome deaths that the demon makes unwilling people commit on themselves. Louise and Michael slowly start to realize they are in grave danger, understandably in denial about the supernatural and at first hard to pick out from the background of misery, trauma, despair, and mental illness that already existed on the farm. It is a grim movie and when there aren’t jump scares, there is a slow grinding down of the audience by the joyless, bleak despair of the film. While the demon terrorizes the two siblings, life in general wears down the two, with the demon gleefully pushing things along. The demon wants everyone remotely connected to the family to suffer incredibly before killing them, preferably after killing those they love first. We never get a real look at the demon, at least not in its true form, but its presence permeates the film. It’s well made, well-acted, the human parts feel very well grounded. Except for one very brief scene, it is a movie utterly devoid of humor. It was quite gory at times, one of the goriest films I have seen in a while. I can’t say I really necessarily enjoyed the film, but I can appreciate the skill and craftmanship that went into making it.

This most impressive film boasts outstanding writing, filmmaking and performances. Chillingly unforgiving, it begins with an unnerving tension that never loosens its grip. For a film with so little say, it leaves me stunned. This movie doesn’t spare anyone. Not the elderly, the devout, the innocent, or the young. It has no moral, no allegory, no hidden meaning, and no special message. Just raw, unadulterated horror befalling no one who deserved it. Expect to be impressed… and drained. From its dawning scenes, this film casts a quietly threatening atmosphere as we observe a day in the life of a farmer’s wife, and one of the final days of the ill farmer (Michael Zagst). The drab palette of the chilly bleak setting complements shots of the ominous night unnerving a barned goat herd. Something is clearly amiss. This is a feeling you’ll find inescapable throughout this film, from very beginning to very end. Moving to the house as the adult children of the home-hospiced patriarch arrive, there is something wrong with Mother (Julie Oliver-Touchstone; Preacher, Blood Suckers from Outer Space). She urges her children to leave, that they don’t understand, that she doesn’t need them… but her claims clearly shroud some dark secret truth. Siblings Louise (Marin Ireland; The Empty Man) and Michael (Michael Abbott Jr.; Hell House) soon come to learn more about their mother’s strange behavior, and stay to tend to their father on the remote rural farm. There are some truly gorgeous shots in this film. It’s bleak… but the camera certainly found beauty in the sunsets silhouetted by the ranch’s black edges. The household carries a less in-you-face Paranormal Activity (2007)-Poltergeist (1982) meets Insidious (2010) vibe. Their haunting develops from subtly shifting objects to disturbing waking visions. But the discovery of their mother’s journal brings with it dark revelations. As most haunting films tend to wander into over-the-top theatrics with gore or jump scares, this film remains more subdued. This lighter touch makes its presentation more grounded, but more calmly disturbing. And disturbing they are. I am not easily shocked. But the kitchen scene had me reeling and yelling at my television—just brutal! I’d also warn of the suicide scenes (yes, plural), one of which being notably more graphic than the others. And let’s also issue a general warning about knitting needles. Dastardly things, they are! Considering the obvious supernatural nature of this film, its execution of violence is often rather unsensationalized. But it will disturb you no less for it. Viewers will find nothing explained in this story. We don’t learn any whys or hows to the maladies that have stricken this family. Essentially this film chronicles an example of a mortal brush with true evil. But primordial evil is not meant to be understood… it is only to be feared. This was a solid film with outstanding writing, filmmaking and performances across the board. It begins with an unnerving tension that never loosens its grip until the credits. For a film with so little say, it leaves me stunned. Writer and director Bryan Bertino (Mockingbird, The Monster, The Strangers) has birthed something chillingly unforgiving. This movie doesn’t spare anyone. Not the elderly, the devout, the innocent, or the young. It has no moral, no allegory, no hidden meaning, and no message. Just raw, unadulterated horror befalling no one who deserved it.

Absolutely disgusting. The seller wont tell you that this movie is locked for region B mediaplayers. Only playable on region A mediaplayers. My money is down the drain.

Excelente película de suspenso que va de menos a más, muy recomendable. El blu-ray cuenta con subtítulos en español.

Was to watch love horror movies sounds good on back thank you

Bueno comenzando con el estado de la película, los bordes inferiores del slipcover venían maltratados y lo que guarda el disco venía como abombado, por el precio en el que se está manejando actualmente ($327) deja mucho que desear. Hablando de la película, yo la compré escuchando buenas cosas y al final me dejé llevar por las reseñas de los de Amazon US, pero deja mucho que desear, esta bien echa para ser una película de poco presupuesto, y es mejor que otras grandes producciones, pero no es nada del otro mundo, en mi opinión no vale su precio actual

Peut-être est-ce moi qui ai trop visionné de films d'horreur dans ma vie, mais celui-ci, qui selon les nombreux commentaires que j'ai lu, devait être pratiquement un chef d'œuvre de film d'horreur et on est à des kilomètres de là. Un film fade, prévisible et dont les effets spéciaux laissent à désirer. L'histoire n'est pas terrible non plus. Bref, pour ma part, c'est une déception.