Wither (2012)
[Reader disclaimer: spoilers will be discussed].
This hidden gem of a film, lovingly reviewed by Fearnet network as "a legitimate love letter to The Evil Dead", is a Swedish horror from 2012 that follows the stereotypical group of young adults as they venture into the woods for a weekend of fun, sex and unexplained, supernatural horror.
Wither (2012) immediately captured my attention from the get-go, subverting the generic and gendered tropes of the characters by swapping them; one of our main antagonists, Ida (played by Lisa Henni) is established as the dominant one in her relationship with Albin (played by Patrik Berg-Almkvisth). It had a promising start because, despite its cliches, Wither effectively coerced me into sympathising/liking the characters, a difficult feat for horror films nowadays.
The other thing that ended up surprising me is the look of this film. For a b-movie, Wither has some sensational cinematography, cleverly framed shots and an enticing soundtrack. I found myself stopping at various points of the runtime to sit and appreciate just how nice everything looked: it had a great balance of realistic gore and aesthetically pleasing mise-en-scѐne.
However, with all films, it has its flaws: for me, this lies in the film's lack of narrative closure.
Despite portraying Ida as a strong character, one that you would presume to be the 'final girl' of the film, she also falls victim to the supernatural curse that haunts their home away from home. This leaves us in the last act with Albin having to mercy-kill her and, consequently, leaving him to be the last man standing: I don't think this works particularly well because although this demonstrates Albin finally facing his fears, it doesn't demonstrate what kind of man he is. All the way through the narrative, we grow to like and understand the motives behind most of the characters, but you never become too invested in Albin, therefore his 'victory' in surviving falls flat.
This was also an issue with Gunnar (played by Johannes Brost), the helper/donor of the story. Gunnar commits suicide shortly before the last act of the film after being infected by the supernatural evil, a scene which hams up the emotive score and shows us flashbacks of his life before everything went to hell. But Gunnar is never fully explored as a character, limiting his life experience to a few flashbacks and a heavily-expositional monologue in a few scenes prior, meaning that although the film wants me to empathise with his death, I am literally incapable of doing so.
Lastly, the antagonist of the film. The reason Wither is likened to The Evil Dead (1981) is because it borrows the formula of kids in a cabin, plagued by a supernatural monster which possesses them one by one, forcing them to turn and murder each other: this starts with Marie (played by Jessica Blomkvist) finding the demonic entity in the basement and becoming the first victim.
However, characters like Linnea (played by Amanda Renberg) and Ida become loose ends in the film's conclusion: we never see Linnea actually die on screen and it's only implied that Ida has died after being crushed. So, even though the entity is officially bumped off, we don't know whether the others are still alive or possessed, making the defeat of the antagonist slightly inconsequential and open to interpretation. I was left feeling like I had a lack of closure to the film, and I don't think that was a deliberate tactic to leave space for a sequel.
A lot of online reviews berate this film for plagiarism but I disagree: there certainly is a difference between stealing and giving tribute, and I honestly believe this film is the latter, paying homage to the cheesy greatness of 80s slasher flicks. It had its flaws narrative-wise, but I had fun watching Wither, and now it certainly sits on my list of go-to horrors for when I have friends over.
Overall rating: 7/10
- K
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