KnockBack, Episode 127: The Witch (Patreon)

Robert Eggers' 2015 debut film The Witch isn't exactly old, but its subject matter certainly is. Taking place in the early 1630s in New England -- a full 60 years before the Salem Witch Trials -- The Witch tells the story of a banished family of devout Puritans who go into the Massachusetts woods to live alone. And... well... you may be able to guess what happens next. Written entirely in period English and lit only by natural light and candles, The Witch may be one of the most thoroughly colonial movies ever made. It also happens to be a masterpiece of pacing, tension, and acting. So let's delve into this spectacular and spooky period piece, as a tight-knit religious family slowly comes undone.