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Slow Burn Horror at its Best: How ‘Gwen’ is This Year’s ‘The Witch’
A dark folk tale set during the industrial revolution in a mountainous region in Wales, Gwen sees its eponymous young lead contending with illness, harsh conditions, an absent father due to war, and hostile villagers. All of which is more than a match for anyone coming of age, but there’s also a lingering threat of something far more sinister haunting her family home. As our own Joe Lipsett said in his review of Gwen out of TIFF last year, the narrative “is a gorgeous slow burn reminiscent of The Witch.” It’s not just the period set, foreboding atmosphere that draws the comparison, or its style of slow burn dread. It’s also in the parallel journeys of Gwen and The Witch’s Thomasin.
Written/directed by William McGregor in his feature debut, the film paints a picture of a harsh world; cold, windy mountains consistently cast in grey, foggy thunderstorms. Of a highly religious village undergoing change, as well as a war raging elsewhere that’s pulled family patriarchs away from their homes. Such is the case for Gwen (Eleanor Worthington-Cox), a young teen helping her mother Elen (Maxine Peake) tend to the family farm and younger sister Mari (Jodi Innes). She bears a heavy load of responsibility on her shoulders, and it’s made even more precarious because her father is away at war. In a male-dominated society where her farmland is considered dated and coveted space for the encroaching industrial revolution, many of the leaders are looking for any sign of weakness to swoop in. That something seems to be off with Elen makes their troubles compounded with danger.
While Thomasin hails from a very different part of the world with a different set of problems, both she and Gwen are women coming of age in an oppressive period. Both are tethered to their family farms and the responsibility that brings, all while dealing with unfair aggression from their mothers. Their families, for different reasons, are outcasts in their respective communities, too. Both deal with themes of power and agency for their leading ladies. Even if their paths are ultimately divergent.
Slow burn horror is categorized by its gradual escalation of dread and terror that builds into an explosive finale. It opts for an unhurried coiling of tension, and a deliberate unraveling of the plot’s mysteries over quick-paced spook fests. It hangs everything on atmosphere. Unsettling, permeating atmosphere. Slow burn horror is steeped in ambiguity, keeping the viewer guessing until the very last minute. Above all, it’s bleak. As things shift from dour to dire in measured strokes, very few slow burn horror movies offer uplifting happily ever afters. At best, the protagonists end their narratives with a note of hope or a hint of freedom, but it tends to be delivered with a caveat, warning, or moral dubiousness. All of which makes slow burn a tough sell for some.
For those that love slow burn horror and films like The Witch, Gwen delivers. Its existential anxiety on behalf of its leading lady mirrors that same feeling we had for Thomasin. The pioneering period folktale that blends with gothic horror set in a stunning landscape creates one of the year’s best in terms of atmosphere. And just like The Witch, Gwen teaches us that it’s often society that creates the worst kinds of monsters.
Gwen releases in theaters, on demand, and digital HD on August 16, 2019.
A luxury team-building trip descends into a bloody fight for survival against a vengeful retreat leader in Corporate Retreat, out today in theaters. It’s the latest entry in a cathartic subgenre of workplace horror that examines every harrowing aspect of job employment.
No job is safe from horror, either, from babysitting to even the most white-collar gigs. But if you work an overnight shift? All bets are off. Vengeful co-workers and bosses aside, the night shift is likely to come armed with witches, creatures, demons, and all manner of things that go bump in the night. Even deadly outbreaks.
Corporate Retreat, along with these five horror movies centered around some of the worst night shifts, will make you glad the weekend has finally arrived.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe
Passenger director André Øvredal goes full throttle for the scares in this quiet little chiller that sees a father and son coroner team stumped over the bizarre mysteries contained within the body of an unidentified young woman during an unexpected night shift. Well-executed scares, clever twists, and earnest performances by Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch give this supernatural haunter serious heft. While the narrative bides its time unveiling the truth behind Jane Doe’s battered body, it’s heavily steeped in witchcraft. In other words, The Autopsy of Jane Doe presents a new take on the subgenre. More importantly, it’s seriously scary.
Cold Storage
COLD STORAGE, StudioCanal 2023
A lethal, mutated fungus breaks free from confinement deep within the bowels of a storage facility. At the frontlines of the madness are Teacake (Stranger Things’ Joe Keery) and Naomi (Barbarian‘s Georgina Campbell), two employees thrust into the middle of the chaos when they investigate an alarm beeping somewhere deep within the building. Director Jonny Campbell (Netflix’s Dracula), working from a script by David Koepp based on his novel, helms the goopy madness with workman efficiency. This lighthearted, goopy horror comedy romp makes the deadly night shift a bit more bearable.
Graveyard Shift
Graveyard Shift follows new hire Hall (David Andrews) tasked by his mean boss Warwick (Stephen Macht) to assist with the insane rat infestation beneath their mill. They find something much most monstrous as the cause. Though the film was panned, it’s a fun creature feature with an always welcome appearance by Brad Dourif as the intensely eccentric exterminator. The film also opts for a happier ending, whereas (spoiler), the story sees both Hall and Warwick getting devoured by the mutated rats, the crew in the upstairs mill none the wiser.
Last Shift
‘Last Shift’
Rookie Officer Jessica Loren (Juliana Harkavy) has been assigned to watch over a closing precinct on its final night of operation…alone. With nearly everything already moved over to the new station, including rerouted 911 calls, it should be a pretty quiet night as she waits for a Hazmat team to arrive to remove biohazardous waste. Instead, it becomes a waking nightmare as she’s forced to deal with unsettling visitors. Last Shift, co-written by Scott Poiley and director Anthony DiBlasi, brings the scares.
Intruder
The overnight stock crew of a local grocery store finds themselves falling victim to an unseen killer in this highly infectious late ‘80s slasher. The deaths are delightfully gruesome and inventive; look for this killer to make excellent use of grocery store items as weapons. Frequent Raimi collaborator Scott Spiegel directed this bloody slasher, which means a lot of overlap with the Evil Dead II. That means putting Sam Raimi in front of the camera for a change, along with Ted Raimi and Evil Dead II’s Dan Hicks. Look for a cameo by Bruce Campbell as well!
Corporate Retreat releases in theaters today; get tickets now.
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