I grew up loving
horror, actually desiring the films which were able to get under my skin. When
I was too young for the bloodier films, I filled up on classic horror movies:
creature films from Cold War paranoia, Depression-era Universal monster movies,
all the way up to the beginning of the slasher films with Michael Powell’s Peeping Tom and Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. The truly daring movies all have
numerous copycats, though rarely are they as engaging as the originals. Wither does well not to attempt to
reinvent the wheel, but as a Swedish take on the ‘cabin-in-the-woods’ narrative
it is able to offer an original style to that old familiar bloodbath.
Made before the
2013 remake of Evil Dead, Wither
could easily be an unofficial remake in many regards, though is a different
reason for the demonic attacks on a group of viral young adults on a getaway in
the woods, based on Swedish mythology involving a creature which lives
underground. The storyline and its practical effects seem most inspired by Sam
Raimi’s cult classic and its sequels, as well as the Dario Argento produced
Italian films, Demons and Demons 2. A group of friends find
themselves fighting each other off once some sort of possession/contagion is
spread after a creature in the cellar is disturbed.
With plot
simplified and narrative somewhat predictable, much of the film comes down to
characters and the film’s bloodier sequences. The effects are flawlessly done,
never so flashy that they detract from the point of the sequence while always
elevated to an extreme level. By the end of the film, the cabin walls are
covered in blood from various battles between friends who have become possessed
and those still trying to survive. There are many predictable characters in
this film, though filmmakers Sonny Laguna and Tommy Wiklund throw a few
unexpected twists in these caricatures, especially those you think may survive.
The effect is not unlike the stoner’s escape from death in Joss Whedon produced
hit, Cabin in the Woods.
Though there
aren’t more than a handful of Swedish horror films, those which do exist are
compelling enough to anticipate more. Tomas Alfredson’s Let the Right One In
was solid enough for Hollywood
The DVD release
by Artsploitation Films comes with their standard booklet insert, which has an
intro paragraph from the filmmakers, an essay by Ryan Clark and an interview
with the filmmakers about the film’s combination of practical effects and CGI.
The disc bonus features include a behind-the-scenes featurette, deleted scenes
and a trailer gallery for Artsploitation Films.
Entertainment Value:
8/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 7.5/10
Historical
Significance: 6/10
Disc Features: 7
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