Streghe - Eredità diabolica

I can't think of a better way to kick off the spooky season. This movie is so dark and good that it left me speechless. TWO WITCHES feels like an homage to Italian Horror. It feels like a Mario Bava picture, with brutality comparable to the works of Lucio Fulci. The acting is great, the score is terrific and the amount of blood and guts quenched my thirst for violence.

It's a well crafted movie about (you guessed it) two evil witches that torment a group of innocent people. No one is safe, and the movie doesn't hold back in terms of shock value. It's the spookiest movie I've watched this year, and I think that you will enjoy it.

... and not every friend on the set of this picture should have been invited to the party, but there are some very effective moments - some scary, some creepy, some gory. Both lead actresses are appealing enough to carry along the rest of the amateur cast (obvious "May" vibes aside). Watched this on Halloween and definitely felt seasonally satisfied. To top it all off, the film sets up its own franchise universe. In short, this film delivers everything you'd expect from a studio film - and it didn't waste a ton of money just to disappoint like a lot of blumhouse productions of late.

Bring it on my witches - i'm ready for your next chapter!

This is a movie that I got the opportunity to see thanks to Justin Cook who sent it over as a screener. What intrigued me was that I heard a review from another podcaster I respected who enjoyed this. This also helped with my 2022 watches as it is getting its wide release this year. Other than that, I knew this had witches and that is a sub-genre that intrigues me. We don't get a lot of good movies, so I my interest was piqued.

Synopsis: witches don't die before leaving their legacy.

We start this movie off hearing an old timey record. There is a baby surrounding by candles. There are also a couple of women who are cackling. One changes into a creature.

This is then told in two chapters. The first is The Boogeywoman. We see a couple out to dinner. She is Sarah (Belle Adams) and she is married to Simon (Ian Michaels). We learn that she is pregnant. Simon looks for a wine to order when Sarah notices a woman staring at her. She is played by Marina Parodi. No matter what she does, this woman won't break it. She even leaves and we see her looking through the glass with a candle.

The couple then head off on a road trip to visit his friend along with his girlfriend. They stop off to use a bathroom and Sarah notices odd things happening inside. She gets sick and thinks she sees the woman from the restaurant staring at her from a distance. Simon doesn't believe her and they get back on the road.

They arrive to hang out with Dustin (Tim Fox) and Melissa (Dina Silva). She is into the occult. Simon is a jerk and mocks her to her face. She brushes it off though. Melissa can tell something is wrong. She wants to help, but it seems what she tries might make things worse as this night descends into a terrifying encounter that may involve The Boogeywoman from the restaurant.

The other chapter is Masha. This is the name of the character played by Rebekah Kennedy. She is an odd woman who lives with Rachel (Kristina Klebe). Masha has an odd one-night stand with a guy who fights her off when she tries to kill him. Rachel thinks he attacked her though. There is something that's not right about this young woman as she starts to take things about her roommate which upsets her. Masha's past is darker than her friend realizes which complicates things further as the two stories come together.

That's where I'll leave my recap and introduction of the characters. Where I'll start is that I want to be honest about something. When I saw Arrow was attached, I was excited. They're a company that does good things with classic and cult movies. When they attach themselves to something that is new, I tend to enjoy it. We get a movie there that sets the tone early. I can see people being triggered with what they do. It is reminiscent of The Witch. If you are familiar with lore that bordered into Satanism in film history, then you have an idea of what I'm talking about.

Where I want to shift then would be that this doesn't pull its punches. It also comes hard with the atmosphere and tone being dark. There is built in peril with Sarah. It is compounded by the fact that Simon doesn't believe her. I can see his point of view. He is looking at things logically. What is interesting on top of this is that Melissa realizes there is something going on. Dustin 'believes' in the things that she does with nature and the occult, until it he needs to. He doesn't want to upset his friend or get Sarah even more riled up. This builds tension for me. Where things go when they check on her gets quite creepy as well. There is a troupe used with this that I'm not the biggest fan and that deals with dreams. I can work with here though as it is used to drive a character insane.

These ideas also bleed over into the second story. That one is deals with an intriguing look at Masha who is off. She makes weird comments about her grandmother being promiscuous. I like that Rachel is 'normal'. This can be taken literal or just the fact that she can understand social cues. Masha can't. It gets creepier when she starts to take on things from Rachel's past that she was told. That doesn't stop there. Masha looks up to Rachel and wants things that she has. Something else that struck me is that Rachel believes Masha was attacked during the opening sexual encounter. This is an interesting look at the current state of the world, since Masha was the aggressor here. I like using this as it gives an interesting perspective.

That should be enough for the story so I want to shift over to the filmmaking next. This is my favorite apart of this movie. We get such creepy cinematography and editing. There are sequeces that are sped up. I'm assuming this is done by removing a frame here and there so things don't move naturally. We also get long takes that build tension. The soundtrack also helps build this atmosphere it is going for. The only issue I have is that they go CGI with certain things. There isn't enough to ruin things for me, but I noticed it. The rest of the effects were good, especially when done practical.

The last thing then would be the acting. I thought that it was solid. I felt that the actors fit their characters. Kennedy was good as Masha. She does so well at being someone who is meek in the beginning. As things go, she gains more confidence, which makes her scarier. Klebe is solid as Rachel. Fox is a bit of an idiot, but like the change with his character of Dustin. Adams was good with what she goes through. It gets quite traumatic to be honest. Silva was good along with Michaels. What is funny about him is that I despised him. That is good though to get a reaction out of me. Other than that, I would say that Parodi and Emma Wilde are both creepy. That works for what was needed as well.

In conclusion, this is a movie that doesn't pull its punches. It tries to be shocking without going over the top in my opinion. I think that we get good filmmaking that help build the atmosphere and made me anxious. The acting helped bring the characters to life. I also enjoy the story well enough. Not the best film in this subgenre, but I'd say that this is worth a viewing for sure. Also be warned, some people might be triggered by things in this movie. I don't want to spoil what it is, but it does have to do with pregnancy and babies.

My Rating: 7 out of 10.

Easily one of the strongest horror offerings this year. A strong first outing for director Pierre Tsigaridis that is bolstered by solid practical effects, a fantastic score and delightfully eerie performances from Marina Parodi and, break-out star, Rebekah Kennedy (whose performance will HAUNT you.) The remaining cast are authentic and believable in their performances.

The film is dripping with atmosphere and mood. It knows exactly what its trying to do and is unapologetic in achieving its goals. The scares are well earned and at times deeply unsettling.

This film is a fresh breath of life in a genre that, at times stagnates. Do not miss it.

Okay, so the writing and acting are absolutely terrible, and the look is very low budget, as is the sound mixing/dialogue. There are some silly parts/facial expressions that made me laugh (reminded me of Drag Me To Hell.) But most importantly, I wasn't bored. It really kept me engaged. I find a lot of horror movies to be incredibly boring, so I'm happy when I watch a film like this. Has some good jump scares, and it was actually pretty scary! I would definitely watch it again.

I thought this movie was being released later this year (2022) and was pleasantly surprised to find it on Prime already.