The Woods (2006)

The Woods: Directed by Lucky McKee. With Agnes Bruckner, Emma Campbell, Bruce Campbell, Patricia Clarkson. Set in 1965 New England, a troubled girl encounters mysterious happenings in the woods surrounding an isolated girls school that she was sent to by her disinterested parents.

“Iu0026#39;d been awaiting this filmu0026#39;s release for over a year now, and finally, after a bunch of problems with editing and whatnot, this movie got a DVD release. u0026quot;The Woodsu0026quot; tells the story of a troubled girl named Heather (Agnes Bruckner), who is sent to a secluded private girls school in 1965 by her estranged parents after causing problems and lighting a tree on fire in their back yard. Ms. Traverse (Patricia Clarkson), along with two other women, run the old school. Heather doesnu0026#39;t seem to fit in at the school, and has a rough first week there, getting in scuffles with a snobby bully named Samantha (Rachel Nichols). Her only friend is Marcy, a quiet girl who is nice but shy. As she spends more time around the school, Heather has nightmares and hears strange voices, and is told the story of some witches who took over the school 100 years ago. As more strange events occur in and around the woods surrounding the school, girls begin to disappear.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eUnlike some, I found u0026quot;The Woodsu0026quot; to be a satisfying horror film. Iu0026#39;ll start off with the story – itu0026#39;s intriguing but derivative, Iu0026#39;d describe it as a hybrid of u0026quot;Suspiriau0026quot; and u0026quot;The Watcher in the Woodsu0026quot;, which are both films that I love, I might add. While it does borrow ideas from these films, itu0026#39;s nonetheless an imaginative and entertaining movie. The direction in the film was great – Lucky McKee, who spawned the unique fairy-tale-like horror film, u0026quot;Mayu0026quot;, does a good job with this film. There are some really creative u0026amp; spooky sequences and some nice cinematography to offer, plus the great u0026#39;60s atmosphere was strongly present, brought to life through the costumes, sets, and the vintage score, and providing a perfect backdrop for the story to take place. I tend to have a soft spot for period pieces, so I really liked the time setting.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe acting was on par and flowed naturally, the whole cast performed very well. Agnes Bruckner is likable in her role and Patricia Clarkson was great as the mysterious, something-isnu0026#39;t-quite-right-about-her Mrs. Traverse. Horror legend Bruce Campbell (of the u0026quot;Evil Deadu0026quot; series) plays Heatheru0026#39;s father, although his role is pretty minor. And Rachel Nichols, who had a small role in the u0026quot;Amityville Horroru0026quot; remake, plays the rude school bully very well. There are some neat special effects used nicely throughout the film, and werenu0026#39;t too overdone. The CG was surprisingly really real-looking. I felt the conclusion of the of the film was slightly rushed, but Iu0026#39;ve seen films end much quicker than this, so for me it wasnu0026#39;t really a big deal. Plus, the ending features some great witch slashings via an axe, which was a nice addition to the film since the majority of it is gore free.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOverall, u0026quot;The Woodsu0026quot; is a satisfying horror movie. Itu0026#39;s different, but itu0026#39;s imaginative and throughly entertaining, with a great story and a strong vintage atmosphere. Definitely not bad at all, especially for a horror period piece. Other than the slightly rushed conclusion, I canu0026#39;t really say anything bad about it. It took over a year to finally get a release (in any form), but the wait was well worth it. I love stuff like this, so it was almost perfect for me. One of the better horror films of the past year. 9/10.”