Summary
After premiering at the 2024 Berlin International Film Festival, writer-directors Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala’sThe Devil’s Bathsecured an exclusive US streaming release on Shudder. Unlike many of 2024’s other horror films I’m excited about — the big-budgetA Quiet Place: Day Oneor Ti West’s trilogy-cappingMaXXXine—The Devil’s Bathis a historical period drama that suggests a folk-horror bent. Starring Anja Plaschg, the Austrian artist behind the experimental musical project Soap&Skin, the film centers on an 18th-century Austrian woman named Agnes, who marries Wolf (David Scheid), a man she truly loves.
However, the couple’s would-be marital bliss takes a despairing turn when Agnes returns home with Wolf. Not only is Wolf disinterested in Agnes, but the couple are subject to the whims of Wolf’s manipulative mother.The isolated Agnes grapples with her growing depression, while the people and systems around her control her life.A haunting and nuanced psychological study, I found thatThe Devil’s Bathsuccessfully leverages the confines of its period-piece setting to create themovie’s horrifying atmosphere— one that places looming tragedy over traditional scares in a way reminiscent of my favoriteA24 horror movies.
The Devil’s Bath Combines Elements Of Midsommar With The Witch
The Devil’s Bath Will Entice Fans Of A24’s Best Horror Movies
In 2015, A24 released what would become one of my favorite horror movies of all time:The Witch. And I’m not alone in feeling that way about the self-described New-England folktale. The featuredirectorial debut of Robert Eggers,The Witchmade $40.4 million against a comparatively slim $4 million budget, helped to propel Anya Taylor-Joy to stardom, and reignited enthusiasm for the folk horror sub-genre. Set in the 1630s,The Witchis also a period piece that prioritizes atmosphere and its characters' complicated psyches over traditional thrills, which is why it’s one of my favorites.
The Witch
The Witch follows a 1630s family that relocates to a remote New England farm. Strange, unsettling events transpire, causing mounting suspicion and paranoia. This testing environment challenges the family’s faith, loyalty, and love amid isolation and tension as they confront the unknown forces lurking beyond their new home.
UnlikeThe Devil’s Bath,Midsommarmanages to create a terrifying atmosphere in broad sunlight…
Why Midsommar & Other Folk Horror Movies Use The Triangle Symbol
The recent revival of folk horror has made use of many symbols that have a long history not only with horror fiction, but with the occult.
A24 followed upThe Witchwith Ari Aster’sMidsommarin 2019. The folk horror film stars Florence Pugh as Dani, a deeply traumatized and grief-stricken young woman who joins her distant boyfriend and his friends on a research trip to amidsummer festival in rural Sweden. UnlikeThe Devil’s Bath,Midsommarmanages to create a terrifying atmosphere in broad sunlight, but it shares some similarities with Shudder’s upcoming release. In particular,I couldn’t help but think ofMidsommar’s insidious cult while Agnes grappled with her own controlling environment— even if she wears a berry crown instead of flowers.
Midsommar
Ari Aster’s Midsommar follows a group of American college students who travel to a friend’s isolated rural hometown in Sweden to experience their renowned midsummer festival. What starts out as idyllic quickly becomes a disconcertingly violent pagan ritual, with the friends engaged in a ruthless competition that will test more than just their friendship. Florence Pugh stars alongside Jack Reynor, Will Poulter, and William Jackson Harper.
The Devil’s Bath Was Directed By The Duo Behind The Lodge
The Underrated Horror Gem Stars Riley Keough
For me,Midsommarwasn’t the only 2019 horror flick that stood out for its atmosphere and psychological terror. In fact, I was surprised by how much I enjoyedThe Lodge, the Riley Keough-starring movie that had the misfortune of hitting theaters just before the COVID-19 pandemic. The filmmakers who helmedThe Devil’s Bath, Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala, are also the writer-director duo behind underrated horror gems likeGoodnight MommyandThe Lodge— and it shows. Keough plays a soon-to-be stepmother who winds up stranded in a rural lodge with her late fiancé’s children.
Wait, Do Robert Eggers' Folk Horror Movies Take Place In The Same Universe?
There are many similarities between Robert Eggers' The Witch and The Lighthouse, and it’s been theorized the films take place in the same timeline.
I find that isolation plays a huge role in both creating an eerie atmosphere and extenuating the characters' distress.
As a snowstorm wracks the isolated area, Keough’s Grace and the two children, Aiden (Jaeden Martell) and Mia Hall (Lia McHugh), experience a series of seemingly supernatural events. Although she can’texplain what’s happening,The Lodge’s Gracerealizes that the phenomena seem to be connected to her haunting past. Much likeThe Lodge,The Devil’s Bathleans into the directing duo’s horror roots to deftly explore the psychology of its characters. Again, I find that isolation plays a huge role in both creating an eerie atmosphere and extenuating the characters' distress.
The Lodge
2019’s The Lodge is a psychological Horror film that sees a man’s new wife stranded at a remote Lodge with his two children, who don’t take well to bonding with their new stepmother. Filled with paranormal-style events and some disturbing dream imagery, a cult-infused story plays out over the course of a few days.
Shudder’s Exclusive Horror Movie Proves Folk Horror Is More Than A Trend
The Witch & Midsommar Sparked Renewed Interest In Folk Horror
Clearly, I’m not the only horror fan to fully embrace these genre trends. In the late 2010s,A24’s horror movies revived arthouse horror’s popularityin the mainstream movie-going world. A sub-genre of horror, folk horror embraces folklore traditions to create an atmosphere of menace. Rife with a foreboding sensibility, folk horror films generally feature rural, isolated settings, which are perfect for breeding superstition and cults.My favorite part of folk horror is that it focuses on people, while merely suggesting the supernatural is at play.It’s something 1973’sThe Wicker Man, a prime folk horror example, does well.
…the renewed interest in the sub-genre is more than just something trendy.
Most of the genre’s pioneers emerged in the late ’60s and early ’70s, but movies likeThe WitchandMidsommarhave reinvigorated the genre. In fact,folk horror movies have since become popularfixtures of the 2020s, proving that the renewed interest in the sub-genre is more than just something trendy.The continuation of the folk horror genre’s popularity and spirit is what excites me mostaboutThe Devil’s Bath’s upcoming release on Shudder. While the film is more horrific than pure horror, it delves into the sub-genre’s most successful elements.
The Devil’s Bathwill stream exclusively on Shudder beginning on June 28.
The Devil’s Bath
The Devil’s Bath (2024): Set in 1750 Austria, the film follows Agnes, a devout woman who becomes burdened by her marital responsibilities. As her life spirals into isolation and dark thoughts, Agnes confronts a sinister path where drastic violence emerges as her potential escape.
