Since it’s mainstream release in early 2016, Robert Eggers’ The Witch has attracted much attention and numerous accolades for its unique and arthouse-esque take on the horror genre. His directorial debut, the story of a devout Christian family terrorized by unknown forces in the wilds of colonial America has left audiences as perplexed as it has greatly unsettled. Much of the details of the story remain shrouded in mystery, and this has inspired many different interpretations of the film’s themes. This, of course, adds to the disturbing tone of the movie, but a closer analysis helps make some sense of the onscreen events, if not make them even creepier. One especially noteworthy scene is Caleb’s death. Arguably one the scariest parts of the
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At one point, William uses the handle of his blade to try to pry Caleb’s mouth open, presumably to speak or breathe. He succeeds, but Caleb then starts to dry heave. The camera becomes noticeably shaky when this happens, adding to the sudden increased gravity of the shot and allowing the audience to experience the nausea as well. Suddenly, a large object appears to be coming out of Caleb’s mouth, and he then vomits it onto the floor. A shallow focus shot shows that it is a bloody apple. This is quite unexpected, but if one has been paying attention, the apple is actually a key to one of the film’s themes. During the film’s first act, when William and Caleb return from their failed hunting trip, Katherine is angry that they would leave unannounced while she grieves. To hide their true purpose for going out, Caleb lies and says they were looking for apples, claiming he mistakenly saw some deep within the forest. Besides being an obvious Chekhov’s gun, it plays into the film’s theme of sin and the consequences of sin. Despite their apparent devotion to the Lord (to …show more content…
For instance, many of the shots featuring Caleb writhing around are from high angles, ranging from just above eye level to nearly bird’s eye view. This makes Caleb look more lowly and vulnerable, as we, the audience, are looking down upon him in his plight, much like heavenly beings looking down upon this poor soul on Earth. Conversely, many of the shots of William are shot from slightly low angles. On the surface, it is merely because he has standing up most of the time while everybody else is on their knees. However, these angles also make William look a bit more intimidating than usual, as this time the character is looking down on us, not the other way around. This is a fairly common technique in film, but it is somewhat more meaningful here. While trying to deal with his eldest son reeling on his deathbed, he also has to face Mercy’s endless accusations that Thomasin is a witch and is cursing the entire family. As we see just after the scene’s conclusion, he is starting to believe these accusations himself. Combine those with the fact that a brutal winter is coming, his crops are dying out, he can’t hunt anything, and his youngest child is missing and likely dead. Surely these are taking a toll on his spirits, and he can just not take any more emotional beatings. He refuses to believe
At one point, William uses the handle of his blade to try to pry Caleb’s mouth open, presumably to speak or breathe. He succeeds, but Caleb then starts to dry heave. The camera becomes noticeably shaky when this happens, adding to the sudden increased gravity of the shot and allowing the audience to experience the nausea as well. Suddenly, a large object appears to be coming out of Caleb’s mouth, and he then vomits it onto the floor. A shallow focus shot shows that it is a bloody apple. This is quite unexpected, but if one has been paying attention, the apple is actually a key to one of the film’s themes. During the film’s first act, when William and Caleb return from their failed hunting trip, Katherine is angry that they would leave unannounced while she grieves. To hide their true purpose for going out, Caleb lies and says they were looking for apples, claiming he mistakenly saw some deep within the forest. Besides being an obvious Chekhov’s gun, it plays into the film’s theme of sin and the consequences of sin. Despite their apparent devotion to the Lord (to …show more content…
For instance, many of the shots featuring Caleb writhing around are from high angles, ranging from just above eye level to nearly bird’s eye view. This makes Caleb look more lowly and vulnerable, as we, the audience, are looking down upon him in his plight, much like heavenly beings looking down upon this poor soul on Earth. Conversely, many of the shots of William are shot from slightly low angles. On the surface, it is merely because he has standing up most of the time while everybody else is on their knees. However, these angles also make William look a bit more intimidating than usual, as this time the character is looking down on us, not the other way around. This is a fairly common technique in film, but it is somewhat more meaningful here. While trying to deal with his eldest son reeling on his deathbed, he also has to face Mercy’s endless accusations that Thomasin is a witch and is cursing the entire family. As we see just after the scene’s conclusion, he is starting to believe these accusations himself. Combine those with the fact that a brutal winter is coming, his crops are dying out, he can’t hunt anything, and his youngest child is missing and likely dead. Surely these are taking a toll on his spirits, and he can just not take any more emotional beatings. He refuses to believe