Grimmfest 2018 - The Witch in the Window

Director: Andy Mitton

Cast: Alex Draper, Charlie Tacker, Greg Naughton, Arija Bareikis, Carol Stanzione

Synopsis: When Simon brings his twelve year-old son, Finn, to rural Vermont to help flip an old farmhouse, they encounter the malicious spirit of Lydia, a previous owner. And now with every repair they make – she's getting stronger.

Grimmfest say: Home, they say, is where the heart is... Recalling the work of Thomas Tryon in its rural country-gothic setting, and Stephen King in its dysfunctional family dynamics and use of the supernatural to offset and heighten the narrative's true emotional focus, this is both a subtly creepy ghost story and a quietly devastating study of a flawed father's relationship with his son, and his desire to rebuild a family and a home. Taking time to establish the characters and involve the viewer in their situation, the film gradually ratchets up the tension, both supernatural and emotional, building to a climax that is both nightmarish and genuinely heartbreaking.

What I'm Expecting: A film full of deeper meaning, in which the supernatural element serves as a metaphor for something more grounded in reality, something all the more terrifying than any spirit. I also suspect the film may have a sort of classical haunted house vibe running through it; something akin to The Haunting or The Others, hopefully with a dash of The Babadook. However it ends up playing out, I'm sure it will be a brilliantly spine-chilling experience.