Josh:
For a moment, I was a bit worried it was going to be too evocative of Nell, but I was able to stave off those thoughts to appreciate this folk horror for what it is: a gore-strewn, half-goofy/half-profound meditation on gender roles and what it means to be human, and part of me thinks maybe I would have preferred it to take itself less seriously, but deep down, I know it needed that kind of cockamamie ambition to work at all. ⏰⏰⏰
Steph:
This is a beautiful film about otherness and belonging and motherhood and the patriarchy, and I loved the low-budget folk horror vibe with all the eerie, woodsy river scenes and the roaming, ever-present Old Maid witch character, as well as the film’s commentary on gender and power and who’s allowed to wield it. ⏰⏰⏰⏰
The Bare Minimum 