Bullet Points: The Reckoning (2021)
Director Neil Marshall has a knack for scaring people. As a member of the unofficial ‘Splat Pack’, Marshall has used his abilities to spook and squeal fans all over the world. He has also dug down in the historical annals with 2010’s Centurian. It was a film that I have raved about and could only rub my hands with joy when I found out his involvement with Game of Thrones. The Reckoning is a different type of pill to swallow entirely. It’s hard to imagine a world where this sort of thing happened but the term ‘modern day witch hunt’ exists for a reason. I look forward to seeing the absolute dread that Neil Marshall is able to bring to the table.
Synopsis: Set against the backdrop of the Great Plague and subsequent witch-hunts against women, Grace Haverstock (Charlotte Kirk) must grapple with the tragic untimely death of her husband Joseph (Joe Anderson) in a society completely consumed by fear and death. Because she rejects her landlord Squire Pendleton’s (Steven Waddington) advances, she is falsely accused of being a witch and thrown in jail for a crime she didn’t commit. Grace must endure physical persecution at the hands of England’s most ruthless witch-hunter Judge Moorcroft (Sean Pertwee) and face her own inner demons as the Devil himself starts to work his way into her mind.
- The context: The film takes place in the England of 1665. The Black Plague is sweeping through the towns and cities and causing folks to flee to the countryside for safety. Grace and Joseph live on a plot of land outside of town and have recently had their first child. Unbeknownst to them, Joseph comes home from selling his crop with the sickness and instead of putting his family through the same fate, takes his own life. It’s from these first few minutes that we start to see the story unfold through the eyes of his wife, Grace.
- The mood: Watching the new father and husband hang himself in the first few minutes can tend to turn the mood to a somber one. Grace is still trying to figure out what to do but she knows that she must persist for her daughter. The first part of the film has already shown us a visual of her digging and burying her husband in a torrential downpour. That means that this movie has some serious bad things in store for us later…
- Stop being a witch about it: The Squire Pendleton (Steven Waddington) holds Grace and most of the town at his mercy since they pay him rent. He shows up shortly after Joseph’s death to collect on the rent. She pays him in the wedding rings that they had both promised to one another. It’s enough to hold her for 6 months. He tries to inquire on another form of payment before outright trying to rape her. She fights back, of course. Eventually brandishing a weapon, but even more importantly, a bystander hears everything.
- Don’t trust anybody: Grace isn’t in a position where she has many options. She attempts to get a loan from one of Joseph’s friends but only finds herself in deeper trouble. This is where the film shows us how everyone in the town (except her friend Kate) turns on her and instantly accepts that she is in league with The Devil and must die. It’s a wild idea, to be sure, but one that is only a few hundred years old to us and probably even less so in other parts of the world. If Stone Cold Steve Austin taught me anything it was to “Don’t Trust Anybody”!
- Torture or “salvation”: Dealing with potential witches is such terrible business and no one could be worse at it than Judge Moorcroft (Sean Pertwee). He is a veteran of Neil Marshall films and also a veteran of killing innocent people in the name of witchery. In fact, Grace recognizes him as the man who had her own mother put to death. She refuses to go out like her dear old man, though. Her will is strong and she wishes to test his.
- A hasty plan: When you’re getting things jammed inside your body and are bleeding constantly it is difficult to come up with a plan. Grace ends up doing a pretty solid of job of thinking through the blood loss and devilish dream to come up with something that isn’t totally stupid. Does it really work? I guess you’ll have to watch to find out.
- The last full measure: Grace has the will and strength of a Titan and we finally get to see it come out in these final scenes. Marshall gets to flex his action muscles in the last several minutes and we see just how far our favorite character is willing to go to prove to herself not only what she is but what she isn’t. Her baby was always her last good reason to hang on and it’s comforting to see a character hold to that throughout the film. It would have been easy to be seduced by these demons but Grace decides to take the more difficult road.
The Verdict: The Reckoning wasn’t a surprising film from Neil Marshall. He has made a career out of blending genres from his work on Dog Soldiers, to his time with The Descent and Hellboy. This time he focused on the witch-horror made famous by The Witch in recent years, and the ongoing female-lead action renaissance. The Reckoning isn’t some knockout action flick which will keep you at the edge of your seat. What it is, though, will leave you questioning all sorts of things that are as simple as, “how could they do that?” to “did this type of shit really happen?” In the end, The Reckoning takes the witch hunts of the 17th century and gives us a heroine that we can empathize with in her pain and cheer for in her vengeance. This is where history’s dark truths and action meet.
RLJE Films and Shudder will release the action / horror THE RECKONING In Theaters, On Demand and Digital February 5, 2021.
A STATEMENT FROM NEIL MARSHALL AND CHARLOTTE KIRK
The Reckoning was initially born out of a desire to spin a good yarn that would chill and thrill in equal measure. We love the idea of scaring the hell out of audiences and wanted to make something truly terrifying, but also unlike anything we’d seen before.
As part of the creative process we did a ton of research, and the more we unearthed about the horrific trials and tribulations thousands of women were forced to endure, we felt this story should carry a more powerful message along with the scares. So, The Reckoning is as much about female empowerment as it is about Witch Hunts and the Great Plague of 1665. And, of course, when making the movie in 2019 we had no idea the world was about to be brought to its knees by a modern-day plague, and how that would add to the many reasons this movie is so relevant for today’s audience.
