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The Witch

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2:31

The Witch

R

Released Feb 19, 2016

1h 32m

Horror

History

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

91%

Tomatometer

337 Reviews

61%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

In 1630 New England, panic and despair envelops a farmer, his wife and their children when youngest son Samuel suddenly vanishes. The family blames Thomasin, the oldest daughter who was watching the boy at the time of his disappearance. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, twin siblings Mercy and Jonas suspect Thomasin of witchcraft, testing the clan's faith, loyalty and love to one another.

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Critics Consensus

As thought-provoking as it is visually compelling, The Witch delivers a deeply unsettling exercise in slow-building horror that suggests great things for debuting writer-director Robert Eggers.

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Britt Ashley

Bitch Media

Like any good horror film, The Witch is rife with opportunity for allegorical interpretation, and one of the most compelling narratives bubbling beneath surface is the origin story of America itself.

Feb 10, 2021

Full Review

Steven D. Greydanus

Catholic Digest

The stakes are real. The Devil is real. All roads do not lead up the mountain. Some lead to the heart of darkness, to the depths of a witch-haunted wood.

Rated: A

Apr 28, 2017

Full Review

Nigel Andrews

Financial Times

The film starts with wordy wittering and ends by trying to woo our shrieks -- from Arthur Miller to Dennis Wheatley in the shortest time possible between two blunt points.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 27, 2016

Full Review

JD Duran

InSession Film

Elevated symbolically with Eggers’ commentary on how fanatical faith is impossible to live up to, and how that churns out something evil, despite its good intentions. All of that is delicately crystallized in the final moments of The Witch...

Aug 8, 2024

Full Review

Brendan Cassidy

InSession Film

The Witch has been aesthetically compared to that of The Shining and The Crucible, and it is easy to see why. But that fails to give enough credit where credit is due: Eggers has a unique direction style...

Rated: A-

Jun 17, 2024

Full Review

Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

…finishes on a few memorable flourishes, even if it ends roughly where one might have hoped that it would start. Nevertheless, the slow burn is effective, and Eggers deserves credit for ploughing a fresh furrow in the annals of witchcraft film-making…

Rated: 3/5

Feb 10, 2024

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Cherith B

I love this movie! Very beautiful with a spooky vibe.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/30/25

Full Review

Jon R

Best of the best The atmosphere this movie created without ever truly showing a whole lot is what makes this movie one of the best horror experiences I’ve ever watched. Top tier stuff

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/29/25

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Jonathan C

Felt rushed as it was a slow build up and got got at the last 10 - 15 mins of the movie.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/28/25

Full Review

Nic F

Fantastic advancement of folk horror in a perfectly cast and directed masterpiece. I loved this film's pacing and "drawing the curtain" reveals. The beautiful cinematography immediately draws you into the atmosphere and at different times, without giving away spoilers, the stifling nature of being judged, the barren nature of having nothing, the eeriness of isolation, the secret magic of nature, and just the overall landscape and oppression of the elements. The ending is just exquisite, which is where I find a lot of folk horror can trail off a be a bit left in the air ;) this has a great final scene that sticks with you and gives you goosebumps.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/27/25

Full Review

Audience Member

For lovers of cinema-as-art, this is an absolute masterpiece. So much stands out. The cinematography is stunning. The lighting in each shot is exquisite. The choice to use only daylight and candlelight was brilliant. All of the visual and auditory details create a deeply immersive, bleak mood. The religious fanaticism of the era feeds perfectly into the growing paranoia. Anya Taylor-Joy is absolutely perfect in her performance - and is the young actor who plays Caleb. It's a different kind of scary+disturbing. One of my all-time favorite movies.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/26/25

Full Review

Garrett B

One of most memorable horror movies. Really depressing but I liked it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/29/25

Full Review

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Robert Eggers

Director

Anya Taylor-Joy

Thomasin

Ralph Ineson

William

Kate Dickie

Katherine

Harvey Scrimshaw

Caleb

Ellie Grainger

Mercy

The Witch: Official Clip - I Will Guide Thy Hand

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The Witch: Official Clip - Witch's Lair

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The Witch: Official Clip - Witch of the Wood

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The Witch: Official Clip - Take Me To Thy Lap

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The Witch: Official Clip - Black Phillip

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The Witch: Official Clip - Peek-A-Boo

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The Witch: Official Clip - The Apple

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The Witch: Official Clip - Black Magic Madness

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The Witch: Official Clip - Black Magic Madness

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The Witch: Official Clip - Take Me to Thy Lap

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Synopsis

In 1630 New England, panic and despair envelops a farmer, his wife and their children when youngest son Samuel suddenly vanishes. The family blames Thomasin, the oldest daughter who was watching the boy at the time of his disappearance. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, twin siblings Mercy and Jonas suspect Thomasin of witchcraft, testing the clan's faith, loyalty and love to one another.

Director: Robert Eggers
Producer: Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, Jodi Redmond, Daniel Bekerman, Rodrigo Teixeira
Screenwriter: Robert Eggers
Distributor: A24
Production Co: Parts and Labor
Rating: R (Graphic Nudity|Disturbing Violent Content)
Genre: Horror, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 19, 2016, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Apr 1, 2016
Release Date (Streaming): May 17, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $25.1M
Runtime: 1h 32m

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