Gretel & Hansel (2020)
Director: Oz Perkins
When their mother descends into madness, siblings Gretel and Hansel must fend for themselves in the dark and unforgiving woods. Hungry and scared, they fortuitously stumble upon a bounty of food left outside an isolated home. Invited inside by the seemingly friendly owner, the children soon suspect that her generous but mysterious behaviour is part of a sinister plan to do them harm.
Country: United States
Language: English
Runtime: 87 minutes
Hauntingly beautiful cinematography and eerie score are not enough to help save this horror reimagining of classic fairy tale Hansel and Gretel, even though they manage to create heart-stopping suspense throughout the film. Oz Perkins’ 2020 dark fantasy horror Gretel & Hansel is a classic case of style over substance, where it succeeds in its rich and powerful visuals, but ultimately falls short in its plot.
After being chased out of their home, Gretel is forced to take care of her younger brother Hansel while trying to find a new home for them. They come across a strange house in the middle of the woods, owned by Holda, a friendly lady who is actually a child-eating witch. Gretel soon discovers that she possesses latent magical powers and Holda tempts her to embrace her dark side.
By flipping the names in the title, Gretel & Hansel hints that the film will focus on Gretel’s character, and the film is essentially a coming of age story for her. The story’s strength comes in its approach to Gretel’s desires and awakening when faced with the temptation of using her powers for evil. The themes and feminist ideas explored in Gretel & Hansel, while strong by themselves, are ultimately not explored fully in the film, thus creating pacing issues and thematically weak moments, which is such a waste considering the potential. This is most obvious especially towards the ending, when the film’s climax seems rushed. It feels as though there were some studio interference that may have affected the final product as the film does seem incomplete, with certain plot points not properly developed and others stretched out for too long.
Despite its pacing issues, Gretel & Hansel is a visual feast, from its eye-catching cinematography to its splendid production design, reminiscent of Italian horror master Mario Bava’s works. Cinematographer Galo Olivares bathes the sets with harsh saturated lights that creates a strangely hypnotic and eerie mood for the film, while simultaneously drawing out the suspense as the characters are slowly pushed to their limits.
And it helps that the cast is absolutely amazing. Sophia Lillis and Alice Krige are wonderful as Gretel and Holda respectively, never once turning their characters into mere caricatures. Sophia infuses a silent rage and strength in Gretel that bursts out in the film’s climatic moment, and manages to portray her character’s growth with a fluidity that does not seem forced. Alice Krige brings a terrifying performance as Holda, the child-eating witch, and it’s brilliant because her performance of Holda as a murderous witch with a devastating past is well fleshed out and never goofy or over the top.
For audiences who are seeking a more typical horror film with lots of jump scares, this film is definitely not for you. Gretel & Hansel is a slow burn arthouse horror film that is more creepy than it is scary, exploring the darker themes of the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale while also adding a fresh twist and bringing a fresh perspective to it. While it suffers in terms of its storytelling aspects, Gretel & Hansel is still a fantastic experience with some pretty strong themes.
★★★ (3 stars out of 5)
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