poe-48833
SEASON OF THE WITCH/JACK'S WIFE/HUNGRY WIVES/CONJURE WIFE isn't, as many seem to think, a train wreck. There are some good performances (including Ray Laine, more or less reprising his role from THERE'S ALWAYS VANILLA) and Romero's STYLE becomes more recognizable here. As with NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD and THERE'S ALWAYS VANILLA (as well as the forthcoming shockers THE CRAZIES and MARTIN), SEASON OF THE WITCH concerns itself with sometimes-twisted Human Relationships: it's THE common Theme running through everything that Romero has done. Like Fritz Leiber's classic novel CONJURE WIFE, SEASON OF THE WITCH touches upon the notion of Witchcraft as a cure-all for what ails us; but, like most of what Romero has done, the Truth is Ephemeral at best: what ails us most is mostly just US...
Gavin567
This is a wonderful film, psychologically complex, well-made, written, paced, edited, and acted. It tells a compelling tale of a housewife's experimentation with witchcraft as she tries to free herself from a monotonous and unfulfilling life. The off-the-cuff, naturalistic acting and camera-work are refreshing and feel very real and palpable. Jan White is beautiful and competent as the lead. This is an important '70s feminist drama, and my favorite Romero film. It deals with the real reason that women get into witchcraft, which is to find meaning for themselves in a man's world. Some of the dialogue sequences are reminiscent of Cassavetes' work, as characters talk in an improvisational style and emotions fly high. Especially chilling is a scene in which the jerky young college professor turns a middle-aged woman on to pot and then needles her about her insecurities until she is hysterical. The protagonist and the other women she knows are trapped in dead-end suburban lives with controlling husbands, and witchcraft here is equated with women's lib and the taking back of their own freedom, feminine energy, and sexual power.
Scars_Remain
It's kind of hard to believe that George A. Romero wrote and directed this film because it is very average and annoying at times and almost seems to go no where. I enjoyed the film but I wasn't by any means sitting there in amazement while I watched it. This is definitely the worst Romero film I've seen so far which I guess is a good thing for him because it isn't terrible.The acting is good, especially the lead, Pam White. I didn't think the story was anything to rave about, it was very simple and slow. Don't get me wrong, I loved slow-paced films but this one didn't go anywhere with it's slow pacing. There were a few scenes that I really liked, but it doesn't make the whole movie great as a whole. As I said before, this film is very average.See this movie if you're a fan of Romero but don't buy it unless you see it for under five bucks.
savvymoon5
This movie was boring, badly produced, the audio was terrible, the acting was amateurish, and the story line was simply ridiculous. It should have been titled; "The Season of the Sexually Frustrated, Bored, 70's Housewife".Any "witchcraft" in the movie was limited to about 10 minutes total-- and was so off the mark, it was ludicrous. Summoning "the Devil" to do a Love spell... Puh-leeez. This is the kind of movie that gives Pagans and Witches a bad rap. Avoid at all costs! You know people, you have to look at a movie as a stand-alone project and forget which "famous" director (etc) had a hand in it. Doesn't matter if they've made masterpieces before or after... when a movie stinks, it stinks! Use a critical and discerning eye!
