Godforsaken (2022): The Blair Witch Ain’t got SH*T on ME!
During a recent movie conversation with a good friend that I’ve known since 8th grade, the movie The Revenant (2015) came up – a film I enjoyed quite a lot at the time. Out of left field, my friend surprised me with, “Oh yeah, I thought it was terrible…TERRIBLE…I hated it!” Now I’ve known The Flans – as we affectionately refer to him as – long enough to have a pretty good idea of his taste in movies, so I was curious what his reasoning was. “You can’t start a fire when it’s cold and wet!”, he exclaimed. To his point, there have definitely been times when I, too, have taken issue with the logistics of a film. He carried on with a few more examples of things he found annoying and unrealistic with the three-time Oscar winner in 2015, and then finished up his rant with a pointed, “Yeah, just don’t even bother with that one.” After I advised him that I had already seen it, he came back with, “well, definitely don’t see it again then.” Duly noted, Flans. Duly noted. So what the heck does all of this have to do with Godforsaken or Blair Witch?
Well, it’s a reminder that regardless of how well a film is received (or not), we all focus on different things in our pursuit of what we find entertaining. Most likely, if someone like The Flans sits down and checks out Godforsaken, he will end up with a whole list of “you can’t start a fire when it’s cold and wet” criticisms. But as for me? Well I loved every minute!
The film opens with the sort of scene that will draw you in right away. An independent filmmaker has traveled back to his hometown in Canada to attend the funeral of a young woman. The solemn scene inside the church is replete with mourning townsfolk intermingling and comforting one other, but is suddenly disrupted with shrieks and screams, as the casket tumbles from its catafalque and crashes to the floor. Confusion and hysteria overcome those in attendance, while the mother of the deceased battles conflicting emotions trying to discern what is happening.
This is my first experience with the filmmaker, Ali Akbar Akbar Kamal. He and I obviously don’t know each other, yet it seems we may have very similar curiosities about the mysteries of life and death, good and evil, and the paranormal. And while this could be purely coincidence, he incorporates one of my favorite Biblical concepts into the film, which I felt made one scene in particular hit much harder emotionally. In scripture, 2 Peter 3:8 says that, “With the Lord, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” Keep this scripture in mind if you give this film a chance, as I think many may miss the tie-in.
The director also coaxes very strong performances from this cast, which can often be a struggle for a lower budget production. Some of the aforementioned shrieks and screams were so bone-chilling and authentic, that there were several instances where I experienced significant stress and anxiety in the moment. Very impressive!
Lastly, since The Blair Witch Project (1999) came out and put the “found footage” concept into the mainstream, this technique has been used pretty regularly, mostly within the horror genre, andi n my opinion, the use of that technique in Godforsaken is a great match. Particularly with a smaller budget, if smartly implemented, it can potentiate some of the subtle special effects, which yields a more immersive experience overall. This is a film I will not soon forget, particularly some of the images toward the end. Looking forward to seeing more from this director in the near future.
If you want to watch Godforsaken yourself, the studio, Terror Films, has released it for free on their YouTube channel. If you’re into horror, check it out; we’ve embedded it above. Or click here to see other horror movies that we’ve reviewed.
As an aside, while we suspect everyone here understands how we came up with the title of this review, for those who have yet to see Training Day with Denzel Washington, you’re missing out.
Score: 7.7/10
Starring: Chad Tailor, Mélie B. Rondeau, Katie Fleming, and Domenic Derose
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