"Here is an atmospherically shot English folk horror from first-time director Dean Puckett set in some eerie time of the medieval past or post-apocalyptic future. It's possibly a bit derivative: there's a touch of silliness in the Donnie Darko-ish pagan beast-god rustling around in the foliage, and no prizes for guessing who its final victim is going to be. But there are some chills and bad-dream unease as well, effectively delivered by a good cast, well directed."
"The awful truth is that Magpie is devoted to an alternative religious force: worshipping a strange pagan deity who can be induced to emerge from the undergrowth to carry out pitiless revenge against the oppressor in return for loyalty. Is the beast Satan? Or is Satan rather the organised savagery of the official church? This is an interesting movie, and a reminder that Arthur Miller's The Crucible is the great ancestor of the folk-horror genre. Severed Sun is on digital platforms from 6 October."
Severed Sun takes place in an ambiguous medieval or post-apocalyptic countryside where an oppressive religious community enforces strict patriarchy. Magpie, a young widow played by Emma Appleton, conceals the truth about her husband's death while clashing with her stern father, the Pastor (Toby Stephens). The film portrays concealment, hypocrisy, illicit relationships, and suspected abuse of a neighbouring girl by her father, ignored by a pious mother (Jodhi May). Magpie worships a pagan deity that emerges to exact ruthless revenge for loyalty, raising questions about whether the true evil is the beast or the organised savagery of the official church.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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