Lizzy and Isaac live a quiet life in a little house on the prairie, where aside from the occasional chicken clucks and goat bleats, the only sound present is the continuous howling wind. When some neighbors move into the only other house around for miles, things begin to unravel for the couple. And what lurks outside at night? Is it paranoia, a mental break, something even more sinister enveloping the quiet farm, or is it just the wind?
Lizzy is a wary, hardened wife, often left to tend to the farm on her own. Isaac is the strong silent type, doing his duty of what needs to be done in this world. The kinda man that builds all of his own furniture and takes pride in his work. The young new neighbors are a bit different, however. Emma is the old time equivalent of a manic pixie dreamgirl, and Gideon is naiive and well…young. And there’s also a reverend handing out ominous tracts with art that looks right out of Cuphead.
THE WIND is a mastercraft of ambiance. The thrumming, dizzying music and long stretches of suspense whorl around the tensely restrained performances like the very wind the film is named after. The isolation of the characters instills a dread like I haven’t felt in a long time. The characters have no one to turn to, and nowhere they can go for help when terror unfurls it’s cancerous claws. Director Emma Tammi impresses at every turn, delivering the frontier story in such a layered way that chewing on it becomes a lengthy event all its own. Like an onion made of gum (I’m aware that’s a terrible metaphor but it makes me smile so I’m leaving it in).
If you’re reading this thinking “this sounds like THE WITCH,” you’re not far off. THE WITCH meets IT COMES AT NIGHT is the vibe I gleaned from my viewing. Oh, and fans of Black Phillip will be delighted to see White Phillip in THE WIND. Yeah, I’m talkin’ more creepy goat time.
A truly engrossing film by a great up-and-coming director; THE WIND is presented by IFC Midnight and is in theaters and on VOD April 5th. be sure to see THE WIND at the very next opportunity. I can’t recommend this one enough.
10/10
-Rat
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