Love Saint Maud and I really enjoyed your essay. I think the horror works so well because her story aligns so wonderfully with accounts of holy women and saints. I mean, I always find it bizarre that in certain circumstances religious visions are considered perfectly fine and yet in others, they are considered madness.
Maud died at the end. Horribly. But maybe a few hundred years back she'd be considered a martyr.
It's a good one! I am looking forward to jumping into that one again, but man... it's a long list of movies I gotta go through for this Substack! I can't imagine when I'll get to it, maybe by the end of summer!
After watching a bunch of movies where the devil/demons talk to or possess people, it was interesting to see a movie about how disturbing that same situation would be if it was God talking to you.
There's a market precedent of transgression in horror wherein both playing to and subverting expectations benefit the bottom line, and that's without accounting for the on-deck powerplay of brand IP. Between how richly this benefits creativity and horror's tendency to focus on ordinary people rather than insider dexterity or extreme mythology, I'm as overjoyed by the genre's surge as I am unsurprised.
I put off watching this, but if it's part of the "Golden Age of Horror" we are in, well, OK--I'm in, too.
This is more of a throwback to stuff like "Don't Look Now", where it's horror but it feels like there's a lot more going on. Definitely worth a watch.
Love Saint Maud and I really enjoyed your essay. I think the horror works so well because her story aligns so wonderfully with accounts of holy women and saints. I mean, I always find it bizarre that in certain circumstances religious visions are considered perfectly fine and yet in others, they are considered madness.
Maud died at the end. Horribly. But maybe a few hundred years back she'd be considered a martyr.
Thanks! I wonder if she really would be a martyr. I mean, I assume everyone around Jennifer Ehle’s character was like, “Figures.”
Ha!
I loved this film. Watched it around the same time as Censor and was thrilled at such brilliant British horror films.
That ending was something else!
Oooh, I'm itching to write about Censor, loved that one.
I look forward to your take. That’s also got quite an ending right?
It's a good one! I am looking forward to jumping into that one again, but man... it's a long list of movies I gotta go through for this Substack! I can't imagine when I'll get to it, maybe by the end of summer!
We need to do this full time just to catch up :)
After watching a bunch of movies where the devil/demons talk to or possess people, it was interesting to see a movie about how disturbing that same situation would be if it was God talking to you.
https://letterboxd.com/film/god-told-me-to/ A classic!
I still need to watch that, I have been slowly getting into Larry Cohen’s stuff over the last few years.
Great review of a very underrated movie. I think it might have the most disturbing post credits scene ever.
I feel like, to debate this, I would have to spoil a bunch of movies!
You'd only be giving away that certain movies have post credit scenes.
I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from going further!!
There's a market precedent of transgression in horror wherein both playing to and subverting expectations benefit the bottom line, and that's without accounting for the on-deck powerplay of brand IP. Between how richly this benefits creativity and horror's tendency to focus on ordinary people rather than insider dexterity or extreme mythology, I'm as overjoyed by the genre's surge as I am unsurprised.
Love this film. Your coverage is excellent. I kept mine short - so it's nice to read a longer and more thorough write up
Thanks!