- Directed by Stacie Passon
- Written by Mark Kruger, Shirley Jackson
- Stars Taissa Farmiga, Alexandra Daddario, Crispin Glover
- Run Time: 1 Hour, 35 Minutes
- Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6CVyg_0iKc
Spoiler-Free Judgment Zone
This is a weird one. Not quite horror, but certainly strange and creepy. Interesting to watch the way it’s done in flashback, and we try to figure out what’s really going on. Worth checking out for sure.
Synopsis
As credits roll, we see various characters doing things in a very torn-up old house. Merricat Blackwood begins a journal that says she lives with her sister Constance in this house; they have always lived in this house. She says a change is coming, but only she knows it.
Last Tuesday, Uncle Julian talks about the girls’ dead father. Merricat goes to town and has to deal with all the people that hate them. People in the town believe that Constance killed their father and poisoned Uncle Julian, which left him permanently physically and mentally disabled. There’s a rumor going around town that the two girls are moving away, but Merricat denies it. She’s skittish and terrified of everyone, and there may be good reason for it.
Constance can’t bring herself to leave the house. She promises someday, she’ll be able to go to town. Merricat does spells for protection, as she knows something bad is coming.
Last Wednesday, Helen and Lucille come by for a visit. As they drink tea, Uncle Julian comes in and talks all about how Constance is an expert of poison. Afterwards, we see that Julian just says what Constance tells him to say.
Last Thursday, Constance wants Merricat to go to town, but it’s not her day, so she’s upset. She leaves in such a hurry that she doesn’t put up the protections, and when she returns, she finds trouble. Their cousin, Charles, has come for a visit.
Last Friday, Charles is still there. Constance and Julian seem to like him, but Merricat is weird and wants to drive him away. Charles volunteers to buy the groceries, and Constance lets it slip that they keep money in the house; father didn’t believe in banks. Constance gives Charles a bath.
Merricat asks Charles to leave the house, but he refuses. There is jealousy between Constance and Merricat.
Monday, fixes a broken step outside and finds one of Merricat’s spell boxes with money in it. Lots of it. Charles says they shouldn’t keep that much money in the house and that they should buy a phone. He doesn’t seem creepy. Charles goes to town and hears what the people think of the sisters.
More and more, Charles starts taking over, and Uncle Julian doesn’t even understand what’s going on… maybe. Merricat finds all her spell jars have been dug up and are now empty. More and more, Merricat is becoming an outsider.
Merricat starts a fire, Charles goes to town for a firetruck while the other gather their things. Uncle Julian locks himself in his room while the girls hide inside. The town congregates, and they’re all wildly entertained by this fire, chanting “Let it burn!” The firemen aren’t enthused about putting the fire out either.
The firemen do finally get the fire out, and then the townspeople rush in to loot the place. The girls are attacked, and then they find Uncle Julian dead.
Yesterday, the girls wake up in the woods and return to what’s left of the house. Merricat says she’ll poison the whole town, and Constance asks, “like you did before?” Merricat admits she put the poison in the sugar for father to eat, but Constance knew that. Merricat knew that Constance didn’t eat sugar. There’s some hints that father was abusive or a rapist or both.
People in the town start leaving food outside the door. Charles finally comes back, and both Merricat and Constance hide from him. He wants to make up and continue where they left off, and clearly Constance is tempted. He breaks in, gets carried away and attacks Constance, so the two girls kill him. Then they bury him in the garden. They clean up the mess as best they can.
Today, they start cleaning up the mess. Merricat starts writing, and we’re back to the opening credit sequence. The two weird sisters go on with their weird lives…
Commentary
All the bright, oversaturated colors give it a sort of fairy-tale look. It’s quirky and almost comedic in many places. The whole film is just one big “what the hell is going on?” tale. It’s never quite obvious until the end whether Charles is just a gold digger, or if he’s actually a good guy.
It’s more thriller-mystery than horror, but it’s very weird and fun to watch.