Rating: 3.5/5
Hooptober 9.0 | 1/34 | Countries 1/6 | Serbia
It's a burning, hurting thing, this world — a biting, retching thing. And yet… And yet…
A witch named Old Maid Maria claims a woman’s infant daughter named Nevena, rendering her mute. The mother tries to hide Nevena away in a cave her whole life.
Then, at 16, Maria appears, assuming the mother’s form, leading Nevena into the woods. There, Maria uses her one witching spit to turn Nevena into a witch like her. When Nevena does not consume living things the way Maria does, Maria abandons her to fend for herself.
Similar to Maria, Nevena possesses the ability to consume individuals and take on their appearance. She finds people living in a nearby village and watches them live their lives. As her curiosity grows about their lives, she kills and consumes one of them to experience life as them.
Maria hides amongst the trees. She looks on as Nevena’s life unfolds, feeling a combination of mockery and envy.
With a poetic cadence, this movie is a folktale that relishes the humanity of everyday life. These moments provide Nevena with the opportunity to live a life that her mother had previously deprived her of.
I didn’t know. I didn't know it could be like this. The hands that light up, the voices that warm up… fires… what soft fires.
Except for the gore, I wouldn’t classify this as a horror movie. However, I must admit that I’m not the best judge here.
I’m curious to see what Goran Stolevski’s follow-up, Of an Age, is like.