Southold, New York, 1843 forms the setting for the latest period psychological horror The Last Thing Mary Saw. Tapping into the eerie mysticism that made The VVitch so enticing, Edoardo Vitaletti’s story focuses on two young women, Mary (Stefanie Scott) and Eleanor (Isabelle Fuhrman). Eleanor works for Mary’s family and the two have fallen in love. Unfortunately, it being the 1800s, and Mary’s father being intensely religious, their passions are treated as sinful. The pair are forced into various attempts to convert and quash these feelings. As they fight for their love, events at the homestead take a deadly turn.
Split into three chapters, Vitaletti slowly, very slowly, builds up the atmosphere and tension, drawing the viewer into the web of this world. Vitaletti keeps The Last Thing Mary Saw quiet and sombre, conversations all barely above hushed whispers expounding the secrets that everyone is keeping. The lighting mirrors the quiet sombre environment by lighting the action with candlelight, letting the dark shadows envelop our characters. This air of dread pushes the film towards the two standout sequences. The first takes place with Eleanor as her dinner preparation is interrupted by a strange man (played by a chilling Rory Culkin). Although a new addition to the story, his arrival leaves a devastating impression on the narrative and fate of the movie. This scene is coated within an oppressive disquiet. The second standout sequence revolves around, of all things, people drinking tea. There’s obviously a lot more to it than simply that, but to reveal too much would spoil things. Be prepared to have your heart in your throat though as Vitaletti pumps visceral threat into the air that is almost painful.
The acting on display here is fantastic. Both Stefanie Scott and Isabelle Fuhrman have been working since they were young and both are familiar with horror movies (Scott having been in Insidious 3, Fuhrman in Orphan), and their previous experience acting within the genre means that they really know how to sell the intense situations their characters find themselves in. They sell the oppression and enforced repression that their characters are dominated by, and you really feel their anguish and fury at being persecuted for how they are. The dynamic between the pair is electric, each supporting the other, and there’s a constant shift in dominance between them. Each one of them takes turns to protect the other, which demonstrates the true connection of their yearned for union.
Meticulously slow, and dizzyingly constructed, The Last Thing Mary Saw has moments of intense brilliance and two fantastic lead performances, plus a stellar supporting turn from Rory Culkin. Although not the sheer perfection of its peer, The VVitch, there are still plenty of delicious delights to savour.
The Last Thing Mary Saw
Summary
Intense feelings of dread and foreboding fragrance the air in a film that marks writer and director Edoardo Vitaletti’s first venture into feature films as a solid debut.
The Last Thing Mary Saw was reviewed at Fantasia. The Last Thing Mary Saw arrives on DVD 19th September 2022 from Acorn Media International.
