I am sure you all know, I am a big fan of witch horror but I feels that is very rarely done right. Hurricane Season is one of the strongest films in the witchcraft horror sub-genre that I have ever seen. It recently arrived on Netflix (UK/Ireland anyway)
I felt the film dealt with a lot of important issues, but, man there was a lot of them. There’s so much touched on here like abandonment, abuse, homophobia, unwanted pregnancy. All of these are then drenched in some creepy witchcraft horror. As much as there is in Hurricane Season, it never seems rushed or forced, the storylines flow effortlessly and all have a part to play leading up the shocking final act.
The film starts off with a group of teens finding the body of a women who was violently murdered in a river. The bloated, bludgeoned body lay face up with a snake slithering and slowly making its way down her throat. The opening scene really did set the tone of movie, this was not a pretty sight, it was really well done. I knew there and then that we had something special.
I can’t go into the story too much without giving too much away.
I went in blind with just the Netflix synopsis and was more than surprised. The 18 certificate was more than enough to sell me. The story is cleverly told in segments with each segment all leading up to the final act. Everything revolves around a dirty old witch (just like they cinematically should be). Although she is feared by everyone, she is also equally respected.
The villagers all use her when they need their problems fixed – no matter how depraved they are. Not only is this witch seedy, she also hold parties in her large run down crumbling mansion/witch lair. These parties are basically orgies she has with the youth of her town – she gives them what they want if they pay her in sexual favours.
These scenes aren’t very sexually graphic but there is just wrongness in the air from the whole situation. You can’t help but think that all these young men (most look underage) are under an evil spell and find it impossible to resist the advances of the witch. I Told you, this ain’t a pretty movie. All of this is told wonderfully in an almost psychedelic dream sequence.
Hurricane Season would be more of an arthouse horror but not as slow-paced as others in the same sub-genre. I don’t think it would be suited for everyone though, and that’s fine. There’s way more going on than there was in the German Hagazussa or Robert Eggers’ directorial debut The VVitch. So, if you enjoyed those, I have no doubt in my mind you will enjoy Hurricane Season.
The acting from everyone was so good, especially the young cast and the witch. There were some really hard hitting dramatic scenes that were pulled off with such strength sand emotion really putting you in there with them (special mention to the jail scene – absoutley wonderful acting). The issues dealt with in this film are raw, honest and not pretty to look at.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
You can check out Hurricane Season on Netflix UK/Ireland. I will update the article when I find out where else it is available. As always, thanks for reading.
- Runtime: 1 Hour 39 minutes
- Genre: Horror/Folklore
- Country: Mexico
- Streaming Platform: Netflix
- Director: Elisa Miller
- Written By: Elisa Miller, Fernanda Melchior, Daniela Gomez
- Starring: Paloma Alvamar, Edgar Travino, Ernesto Melendez, Andres Cordova
Check back soon for more reviews, list and news. Need more Horror Movie Recommendations? Just Follow This Link.
