Season of the Witch (2011)
Brief review: Sena's medieval fantasy, "Season of the Witch" is the first release of 2011, and despite its paper-thin plot, complete lack of scares and so-so sword fight sequences, it somehow manages to entertain, even if only occasionally. "Season of the Witch" is basically a road movie, as Cage and company are on a mission to transport a supposed-to-be-witch to a faraway monastery, in order to stop a mysterious plague, that religious masses believe is a work of witchcraft. However, it's biggest problem is, that it doesn't work very well, neither as a road movie, nor as a period fantasy, simply because it has very little to offer in terms of originality or thrills. Having said that, the film is far from terrible, visually. Shot in Central Europe, "Season of the Witch" boasts a scenery, that is as beautiful as it's grim, but the special effects while passable, often border on cheesy. Just like the movie itself, the acting is so-so. Cage and Perlman are convincing enough in their roles as Behmen and Felson, and the relationship between their characters is somewhat believable. Claire Foy also does a fair job as the innocent-looking, yet evil witch, but the supporting performances are, unfortunately, pretty dull.
Overall summary: Cliched and silly, yet hardly boring, "Season of the Witch" is a just another medieval horror/fantasy fare, that you'll forget as soon as the credits roll.
14 comments:
Yeah, I saw your opinion on the Central European visuals. I didn't think of that, good one George! ;)
Thanks, J! :) Actually, the settings were probably the only really good thing about this film. ;)
Great review as always. I love your summations. :) I wrote an article about this film and all the behind-the-scenes stuff kind of makes me want to see it. The scenery is supposed to be spectacular, as you said. I know they used an actual castle, Kreuzenstein, for the cardinal's residence. They even created over 4000 books by hand for the library. I know it won't be good, but it can't be worse than Tron:Legacy. ;)
Oh, thanks, Mel! :) Actually, the summary is my favorite part of writing reviews :) I'm quite good at it :) Ha-ha!
Yep, I read about that, and I admire their choice to use an actual castle.. in Germany I think. Over 4000 books by hand? Wow, are you serious? :)
Oh, as you probably know I'm a Tron:Legacy-hater, so I despise this film before I've even seen it. I refuse to pay 8 bucks to see it! :) I'll wait for it to leak online, probably.
Meh, I like Perlman, but I'll pass.
And everyone wonders why I skipped this one.
Still say Tron: Legacy was a lot of fun and a musical and visual feast.
Vapor, I like him quite a lot too, especially as Hellboy ;) Actually, "Witch" is not that terrible. I've seen much worse.
I've decided not to skip it, 'cause it was the first major release of 2011. Didn't hate it that much, if I have to be honest.
T:L looks okay, in a neon sort of way (haha), and I love Daft Punk, but it doesn't seem that 'fun' to me.
Cage has had a LOT of misses of late, except Kick-Ass of course. I may check this one out on DVD then.
I look forward to not seeing this as well. I haven't really heard much in the way of praise for this film, and if Ron Perlman can't save it...
I agree with Alex J. Cavanaugh though. Tron:Legacy may have not been heavy on plot, but visually and musically it was great fun. IMHO: http://filmsrruss.blogspot.com/2010/12/tron-legacy.html
Goodness, it was so awful that I rejected the idea to review it. Hideous.
Jaccsy, I couldn't agree more. Actually, I'm not a big fan of him, not to say that I don't like him.
Russ, there are way more terrible films than "Witch" out there. Not that I liked it, but it really wasn't that awful. As for Tron Legacy... well, to me, it looks like a modern neon discotheque, rather than an actual film. Oh, and the premise itself is RIDICULOUS! Sorry, I just hate it.
Guys, it seems you've been affected by the negative reviews quite a lot, as "Witch" might be stupid, but not even close to "awful". It's pretty watchable actually.
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