The Reckoning (2021) | Film Review

A film set against the Great Plague of London in 1665 might suffer a bit of “unfortunate timing” releasing so close to recent events, yet this latest from director Neil Marshall (The Descent) has no interest in a capturing of the moment. Instead, The Reckoning sets its sights on a vaguely accurate series of historical events and presents them as an engaging fictional thriller which teases elements of the supernatural, while simultaneously planting the film’s feet firmly on the ground.

A stirring opening sequence demonstrates the horrors that occur when a mother is branded a witch, stripped from her daughter, only to be later tortured and burned at the stake. This practice of “witch-hunting” is well documented, as many of these uneducated settlers needed a face to blame for the tragedies that wrecked their villages and families. Confess to your devilish ways to free your soul, or be damned to eternity. Either way, there exists a high likelihood of being set ablaze. Pretty much a lose-lose for any woman caught in the crossfire.

Grace Haverstock (Charlotte Kirk) begins her story finding her husband hanging from a noose outside their meek cabin. Marshall dispatches the standard method of a drug-out prologue, introducing our characters and their relationship by instead choosing a rather sleek manner of various flashbacks accounting for what led to this moment, while Grace proceeds with cutting down the body of her husband Joseph (Joe Anderson), and his subsequent burial. This obviously runs the risk of weakening character development, yet in this case, it affords the film an opportunity to establish its primary characters and hit the ground running.

Now a widow, Grace is forced to contend with the unwanted sexual advances of the town squire, Pendleton (Steve Waddington, well-cast for his snide viciousness). Once Grace spurns his attacks, Pendleton decides to invoke a sadistic revenge ploy: proclaim Grace a witch. A town under siege by pestilence and fear, it takes little to stir up the locals, and once the renowned witch-hunter Judge Moorcraft (Sean Pertwee) arrives, it will take more than sheer will power to save Grace and her daughter.

Written by Edward Evers-Swindell, Neil Marshall, and Charlotte Kirk, The Reckoning serves as an obvious showcase for Kirk herself. Grace is forced through humiliating interrogations and invasive torture techniques, and Kirk rallies through to carry the film steadfast to its end goal. Despite a suspension of disbelief in certain character moments – Grace is far too physically resilient following various medieval torments – Kirk nevertheless imbues Grace with the fiery determination to carry our belief that her grit will serve her story’s conclusion well.

While Waddington chews up scenery quite nicely, Pertwee’s Judge Moorcraft is a foe of grandeur proportions. Moorcraft is no mere mustache-twirling villain, he is a man of conscience. He and his twisted assistant Ursula (Suzanna Magowan) are devout in their beliefs, resolute in their actions. Moorcraft seemingly takes no pleasure in his inflictions of abuse, to his mind he is doing God’s work. Pertwee plays Moorcraft straight, and it is this intensely genuine devotion that elevates Moorcraft from what could have been a one-note performance into an effective demonstration of the mindset of the times.

Despite the unfortunate misstep that was Hellboy (which was plagued itself by a choppy script and botched editing), Marshall remains a visionary who can make the most out of a restricted budget. The Reckoning is smartly shot, often times almost appearing as a Game of Thrones spin-off feature, and Marshall tightens up the pacing so nary a minute is wasted on needless exposition or random pontificating. Marshall also delivers a hefty dose of sex and violence without ever wandering off into needless gratuitous visuals.

There is even a rather clever through-line in the film where Grace is seemingly tormented by visions of the undead and dalliances with the Devil himself. It is to Marshall’s credit that these “dreams” give the audience the opportunity to wonder how deep into the supernatural well this film will actually descend; is this an illusion or could Grace truly be a witch in sheep’s clothing? It’s well-played in giving us another angle to debate as the film reaches for its namesake climax.

If you are looking for a tightly-paced thriller with enough truth to prompt a bit of historical research and engaging leads to keep you invested, The Reckoning is wicked fun.