Inherit the Witch review – like an am-dram theater group hosting a murder mystery party in an Airbnb | Films

SWritten and directed by Cradeaux Alexander, this is a low-budget tale of the occult, and not a very good one at that. If you're a fan of Garth Marenghi, it may be of interest as it's not too often that you get to see the characters Marenghi is based on in their natural habitat. “Sharknado”-type pseudo-schlock abounds, of course, but these films try to be so bad that they're good, which “Inherit the Witch” doesn't seem to be.

The plot revolves around Cory (Cradeaux) and his family, who we meet in a flashback to Cory's birthday party in 1984, which he celebrates with his twin sister Fiona. We then jump to the present-day New Forest, where we learn that Cory and Fiona's father has died, meaning the family needs to get together once again. Much chatter and tedious analysis of an intergenerational drama ensues, followed by endless occult dealings and ripe scenes of hysteria (“We are monsters!”, “Kneel before the mother!” and so on). The dialogue is rich in declamatory speeches and supposedly funny asides, but none of it really hits home.

“Inherit the Witch” may not be quite in the same league as Tommy Wiseau’s “The Room” – what could it be? – but the use of split-screen footage that doesn't appear to have been filmed with split-screen in mind, so that faces are cut in half, is really an aesthetic all its own. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of shots with the white balance set incorrectly, so that entire backgrounds are subject to a kind of white-out effect and the impression is created as if figures moving towards a window are drifting towards the sky. Someone also spotted the vignette setting in iMovies or similar, and from time to time there's a bit of sepia filtering reminiscent of Instagram circa 2013. Apparently there was a real circle involved in this project, but the effect is more of an am-dram theater group hosting a murder mystery dinner party in an Airbnb in Dorset, which is all well and good until you expect other people to be there to sit.