O Senhor do Caos

We have a vicar who rarely acts very religious (except in church) and drops F-bombs casually on multiple occasions. Her spouse seems like a bitter atheist and will not pray with her. I mean, they seem more like an average mismatched couple - one theistic, one not - than AN ACTUAL VICAR OF A CHURCH and her husband.

People get angry and then calm down within seconds. They don't have much respect for the vicar and treat her more like a random crazy woman than anything else. The children even start chanting in a vulgar way, gleefully, without a hint of fear or embarrassment at acting that way in front a church pastor.

I feel like Lord of Misrule is a patchwork attempt to mimic other, older horror movies. Like mixing 1970s The Wicker Man with 2000s Silent Hill and a random urinating scene like the original version of The Exorcist.

Lord of Misrule does have atmosphere and lovely folk horror aesthetics yet the writing and character development are significantly wanting.

Any comparison to "The Wicker Man" is in passing; ie a small village seemingly trapped in the past that believes in a folklore legend. That is it.

Someone called this "amateurish". Well as an avid film watcher, former pro actor, and a vet of the biz I can point to a half dozen or more "films" that were shot by apparent teenagers that managed to get distributed via VOD, or before that, VHS. (Actually I am doing a disservice to teenage movie makers as I was once one and made better films than some of the crap I have seen professionally presented!!)

This is an engaging movie that keeps your interest from start to finish. No one phones in a performance and the script, while it does level a bit in the middle, provides enough twists to make this very worth your watching while.

I recently watched the Irish/UK 🇮🇪 🇬🇧 film Lord of Misrule (2023) on Hulu. The storyline follows a minister and his daughter as they move to a seemingly welcoming village. It appears to be the perfect home for their small family-until the daughter goes missing. As the search unfolds, it becomes clear the village may have darker intentions.

Directed by William Brent Bell (Orphan: First Kill), the film stars Tuppence Middleton (Possessor), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Robert Goodman (Gangs of New York).

This was an uneven film with some interesting elements. The concept had potential, evoking vibes of The Ritual and Hereditary at times. The festival backdrop and costumes were visually engaging, and the film maintained a mysterious atmosphere throughout. However, the storytelling dragged in places, making it easy to lose interest. The acting felt authentic, and there was an unexpectedly great "peeing" scene. The creature design was well done, and the ending twist was solid.

In conclusion, Lord of Misrule has enough intriguing elements to keep your attention but struggles with pacing. I'd score it a 5.5/10.

Firstly, this 5.x rating is nonsense... Normally I try to be very even handed with reviews and not get too worked up, but in this case we honestly have a very, very good film that is extremely well made, well acted, and with a fantastic Folk Horror atmosphere, in my lowly and wretched opinion the best I've seen since the original 'WICKER MAN'

The reason why I feel so strongly about this movie is because it seems that we so rarely see such a well thought out, deeply intriguing Pagan/Folk Thriller without a bunch of heavy handed, over the top cruelty or violence. In this case, we have a very well crafted film that has TONS of genuine and creepy atmosphere which strongly lends itself to some good suspense and Mystery.

Yes, the story is a bit on the slower side than what is considered 'Horror' these days, almost a throwback to when these kinds of movies relied more on building a good, effective atmosphere with continuously tightening up the tension until a powerful ending. And, what I personally like about the ending, without of course spoiling anything, is that we have something that I feel is refreshing and unlike the usual cliched 'Sting' at the end, but still with a pretty strong surprise.

It is too bad that a lot of people come here and gave this excellent and well made film such low scores, simply because THEY just don't care for slower, more atmospheric, Folk Horror stories. It's like I've said many times before in my reviews... I personally hate sadistic movies that feature Torture Porn. But, it would be unfair for me to come here and rate all the movies like that poorly just because I personally do not like them. That would not help others who happen to like those kinds of movies in any way to know whether it is a 'Good' film or not, would it.

So, I refrain from doing that although I very much do not like those kinds of movies. It would be very nice if others would show the same respect for the types of films that they simply don't care for or find 'Boring' as many say here, and not deliberately lower the score for those of us who DO indeed really like this type of Horror. Thus my rare but I feel definitely earned '8' rating that I gave it.

If you don't like, slower, more atmospheric Folk Horror films, then please just give this one a pass and kindly don't ruin the score for those who do like them. BUT... if you do like these kinds of Folk Horror stories like the Iconic 'WICKER MAN' (original of course) then you should really enjoy this excellent, well made, and I feel quite effective Horror story.

If you ever seen a horror movie, the chances are you know from the start where all this is going. And there will be no surprises.

So the main problem of this movie is the plot, its based on classic folklore stories and follows the path that so many movies (or even child stories) have shown before. Which might be good... but it does not exceed any expectation.

So some might call it a classic, some might call it a cliche. Either way, its not unique, its not new, even the creature - I saw it in dozen other movies, and I can name multiple where its simply executed better ("The Ritual", for example).

In other terms, it is mediocre. Characters are not very likable or believable. The motivation of the antagonist (for example) and his image - I believe they are severly lacking any originality or style, they are so superficial it hurts.

Ending is simply weak - culmination is unsatisfying. It is simple (which is good sometimes), but it ain't smart or fulfilling, or entertaining in this case.

So I'd say the score I've given in generous. It's a mediocre movie. Some might say its okay, some might say its bad, but there is no basis to call it great - that is for sure.

I see multiple ways this could've been a better movie (just add a single thing that isn't a trope), but it is obvious that nobody bothered here to create something new or unique, this is just same old same old once again.