TRIGGER WARNING: THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS DISCUSSION OF…
- MURDER
- DEATH
- CHILD SEXUAL TRAUMA
“The Love Witch” (2016) is a psychedelic, 70’s style Horror/Comedy/Drama…which is as unusual as it sounds. The movie is directed, written, and costumed by Anna Biller, in her second film (her first being 2007’s “Viva”). Like all her work, the film centers around ideas of womanhood and sexism.
The “Love Witch” of the movie (Ellaine) is a former burlesque dancer, apothecarist, and practitioner of witchcraft; she’s moving to a small town near San Francisco in search of love. Throughout the film she uses her love magic to attract men, her love being so strong it causes them to die.
If there’s anything positive to say about the movie, it is the art direction. Every single shot of this movie is absolute perfection; it beautifully mimics the style of late 60s-70s filmmaking with visually compelling use of hazy, yet saturated color. The absolute worst part of this movie is the acting- some of these actors are, to put lightly, lacking. In particular, the actor for the character Barbara seemed to be searching for the next word of every single sentence she spoke. To give credit where it may be due, this could be an intentional allusion to the many cheap horror B-films that came out in the 70s. Intentional or not, it can make for an extremely grating viewing experience.
The themes and dialogue of the movie often come across as heavy-handed and overdone. Rather than relying on the beautiful visuals and symbolism, the movie feels the need to over-explain elements of the plot that could have been inferred from the events of the movie.
One of the major themes of the film is the line between sexual liberation and objectification. In the movie, the leader of the covenant of witches is a man who tells the women they should “wear makeup and perfume” to dance provocatively to control men rather than fight against their supposed raw femininity/goddesshood. Despite telling them to unlock their “goddesshood”, it is all in the service of garnering male attention.
Despite all its eccentricities and issues, the movie is ultimately fairly enjoyable. With beautiful film-making, direction and artistry, it is probably worth watching if you view it as a piece of art, not a movie. If you are interested in watching “The Love Witch”, It’s available on Tubi and Pluto TV for free.
