Hot! - Hagazussa

Hagazussa is often grouped with films like The Witch (2015) and Midsommar (2019) as part of a "new era" of folk horror that uses historical settings to explore deep-seated psychological and feminist themes. It is frequently featured on lists of "brutal" or "unsettling" cinema due to its bleak tone and abstract delivery.

The film establishes a tragedy early on. Albrun’s mother is accused of witchcraft by the local villagers, who are desperate for a scapegoat for their hardships. We witness the brutal reality of medieval isolation: the villagers are not caricatures of evil, but terrified people whose superstition manifests as cruelty. When Albrun is left alone after her mother's agonizing death, she becomes the sole focus of the village's ire and lust. Hagazussa