The Coven (2015) User Reviews (24)

The Coven should be stuck in the oven.

[chrismackey1972 · 3/10 · 22 February 2015]

I'm asking Hermione Granger to do her obliviate spell on me so I can forget I ever watched this movie.

It had an interesting premise. When you cross The Craft with Ghost Rider and The Blair Witch Project, it equals WHO CARES?! This is more like a found footage film about a bunch of characters I couldn't care less about.

It was done on low-budge...at least it seemed that way. Filming in the woods for the most part is going to cut down on the budget. That's fine, because I love the forest atmosphere. Some people had a problem with the acting. That wasn't the case with me. I thought the actors/actresses did an appropriate job for the characters they played. My problem with the movie was the overall storyline. What was the point of having Mrs. Belial in the movie at all? She wasn't the one chasing them in the woods. I thought the parts with her were total waste because it didn't really fit in with the rest of the movie. Was she supposed to be Lucifer? Or was the biker Lucifer? Or was Lucifer nothing more than just an acronym of the victims at the end? They didn't clarify that.

Dexter Fletcher was interesting, and I wish they kept the POV on him instead of the kids in the forest. Because the POV was mostly on those girls, the story slowed drastically with their drinking, games, and silliness in the forest.

Out of all the girl's, Eve's character was the most interesting, but that's not saying much, because she didn't do very much. She was more like the storyline's information dump for the viewer, because she's the only one who did any kind of research. When the girls texted her for help...first of all, did one of the girls text her? Or did the witch, Lucifer...whoever text her? And was that forest in Eve's backyard? It had to be close enough for her to walk there in her pajamas.

The letters on the chalkboard moving around was a bad special effect. Why they kept showing it, I don't know. I got it, OK?! I know the words spelled out Lucifer. It really wasn't all that clever. And they kept doing it. Ugh! I have to give credit to the composer of the music during the credits. That was soothing and at the same time haunting. However, I didn't think the movie was worth sitting through for that.

I gave the movie a 3-star rating. I can't recommend. It was nowhere near as bad as some horror films I've seen, but I was so bored for the most part, especially with the girls in the forest. They were the lead characters, but I couldn't connect with any of them. They struck me as a clique of rebellious girls who were not likable at all. Either watch The Craft, Ghost Rider, The Blair Witch Project, or have a marathon of all three.

It sucked!!!!

[hnhbullies · 1/10 · 24 February 2015]

I wish I could get the time back that I invested in watching this craptastic film. My 4 year old has a better imagination and acting skills then half of this elementary school cast. What was the plot of this film? It was all over the place and the acting was atrocious! I thought I was watching something a kid had filmed and wrote there was no point in even wasting what money they put in this film. I'm so happy I didn't waste my own money on purchasing it and rented it instead. I even told the movie place to throw it in the trash or place a sign above it saying "Please don't waste your time on this movie!!!!!" What more can be said.....lol

Waste of time

[panther_husky · 1/10 · 24 February 2015]

This was one of the worst movies I have seen. Boring and a total waste of time.

Some of the information mentioned in the film (which I wont give away) was completely and utterly stupid and wrong. That aside, the film wasted too much time on the girls when it could have spent more time giving the audience more of the history of what actually happened in the past.

There were times where I felt that the girls didn't feel like acting and slurred their lines, sometimes a little difficult to understand as well.

The teenage boy (where the hell did they find this one) was not convincing and you just wanted him to vanish.

Finally, there were scenes where you were able to piece together the story and once you got that, a sigh of relief that you made it through to the end. It was hard and managed to keep my hands away from the remote control. The stop button was calling out to me.

Blair Witch meets The Craft ...... School girls vs the mystery in the woods. Nothing new, nothing interesting and nothing special.

Watch your cat sleeping, it's more entertaining.

This film is brilliant...

[spiral5441 · 1/10 · 5 March 2015]

...as an example of why nepotism needs to be completely eradicated for the good of humanity.

Watching this, I found myself wondering why whoever was in charge of the casting for this film had hired 3 kids with no acting ability whatsoever alongside a bunch of noticeably more competent actors.

Cynically I thought to myself "meh, the kids in question are probably related to the casting director or something". So as soon as this dreadful film finally came to an end, I popped onto IMDb to check if my suspicions were correct.

Indeed they were, in fact it seems this entire film was something of a family project; the director being John Mackie, the writer being Jayney Mackie, and the three similarly talentless kids being Cloe Mackie, Holly Mackie, and Billy Red Mackie. Oh and there's even a Rory Mackie listed as the "digital imaging technician".

A crappy film is one thing, but depressingly this also reflects one of the biggest problems we face as a species in this day and age: many people performing the most important jobs in the world are only there because of family connections and inherited wealth, titles and opportunities, rather than getting there on their own merit.

So thank you to The Mackie Family for spearheading this deepest of social problems that our world is currently riddled with; I realise it wasn't your intention to do so, but your efforts illustrate beautifully why this rigged and unjust system needs to be destroyed by any means necessary.

A horror film you can safely let your tween watch.

[d-hellier64 · 3/10 · 17 March 2015]

The woods at night. A bunch of teenagers up for a bit of fun and some truth in the historical facts of this story all make for a horror film that is safe for your Tween to watch. My daughter loves the Mackie twins and of course wants to watch anything with them in so I was relieved to find the story, which has it's base in reality, provided a gentle horror with no gore or unnecessary bad language and she really enjoyed it. Judging by the credits this film looks to be something of a family affair! I kind of liked the idea of a family spending time together making a film. I also liked Dexter Fletcher and his Harry Potter style classroom. Clearly a low budget film, there were no earth shattering special effects or graphics, just honest and basic story telling.

I remember when this was called "The Craft" and actually had a budget.

[princebuster82 · 2/10 · 3 March 2015]

I gave it a "2" because it simply isn't the worst movie I've ever seen, but it's pretty lousy. I knew we were in for a stink-fest when the movie opened with a guy dressed up like Doctor Who teaching a class on Wicca and then a witch comes in and her eyes turn red and bulgy. It looked like something out of Who Framed Roger Rabbit. The CG was pretty bad and the acting was subpar. The plot is almost nonexistent.

This is not the kind of movie I would watch unless someone made me. If someone makes you watch this film, then they probably hate you.

As has been stated elsewhere, this is basically a "found footage" film. (Why do they keep remaking Blair Witch Project? I understand that it's much cheaper to disguise poorly shot digital footage as "amateur video" but hasn't this run the course yet? Why was Paranormal Activity able to turn a profit and command a series of sequels? Why do people pay to watch mediocrity? Am I reading too deep into this?)

Anyway, I never found out what happened to the girls. I stopped caring long before.

Blummin' hilarious 😂😂

[roseadams-99851 · 5/10 · 19 April 2015]

This film is so bad it's good!! The acting is as wooden as a stick, and that's saying something. I have watched some bad films before and this does not compare. With no real story line and the plot is as basic as 2+2. I would recommend this however, seeing as my friends and I laughed all the way through it was very funny!! The girls on the cover don't even feature in the film. Talking about the cover, we believe that this is where the budget was used (to gain the shiny case) as the special effects were pathetic. It kind of resembles 80's graphics but worse. Truly awful, but hilariously entertaining!! Do watch if you have a spare 1.5 hours.

(Not really a 15, it's a PG but they say b****** and d*** a few times)

DO WATCH IT!!

What did they spend the budget on?

[mjsreg · 1/10 · 3 April 2015]

Really, this is a dire film. The story could have been good, but the implementation was well below par.

All the Mackie twins did throughout the film was mumble their lines (so much so much of what they said was incomprehensible) and obviously try to avoid eye contact with the camera. Absolutely no acting skill whatsoever. Obviously they were cast because it seems their mother and father made the film - as was another member of the family.

The only credible bit of acting from the young cast was from Madeleine Rose Witney who plays Izzie. She is good, and if it were not for her acting skill there would be no interest whatsoever in continuing watching the film to the end.

Dexter Fletcher played his part well, as did the other adults, with the exception of Magda Rodriguez - she was awful.

The story had potential but was very lacking in continuity or substance. We sort of get the idea of what the film is going to be about - and that is it. There is no pulling of the viewer deeper into the story as the film progresses. A bit of an introduction in the classroom and that is it. The viewer spends the rest of the film wondering how the initial story relates to dumb teenagers camping in an urban wood - saying fairly dumb things.

Then there is the 'mysterious biker' in the woods. The character makes no sense other than to corral the teenagers. There is no explanation of why he or she is present or their connection to the coven.

There is one mystery. How did the producers manage to spend an estimated £615,000 on this trashy production! Film students could (and have on many occasions) done a much better job on virtually no budget.

Overall a very, very poor film. It is worse than 'The Hospital', and that was a film I thought was the worst I would see for a long time.

Seen better high school media projects.

[crossprojection · 1/10 · 13 April 2015]

I don't even know why I watched this, I mean from the first 5 minutes the acting quality was at an all time low, along with the poor scripting. I have honestly seen better media projects recorded by high school students. Sometimes I wish we could give a 0/10. Why Dexter Fletcher agreed to be in this I really have no understanding, work cannot be that hard to come by you'd put appear in this. And then to see why it's a family project just makes me feel like they didn't take time or effort to cast some better people. This could have gone so right but it went so wrong, just because either overly estimated ambition from the director/writer.

dreadful!

[kate_taylor09 · 5 May 2015]

where to start.. Not sure why anybody would think it was a good idea to film this... Even after film completion why on earth was it released I've no idea.. This film was just .... absolutely dreadful.. i had to turn it off somewhat through..

it was so bad i literally couldn't bare it =|..

there was 1 or 2 actors that were okay, the rest were real bad .. the storyline OR lack of it was unwatchable and the glowing eyes were hilariously ridiculous.

pretty much impossible to put into words how bad the film was, afterwards i had to watch sponge-bob square-pants to revive myself.. luckily, i live to tell the story today =)

I AM THE GOD OF HELL FIRE

[nogodnomasters · 3/10 · 29 November 2018]

A group of five girls, none of which is Fairuza Balk, opt to go spend Halloween on the local Queens Wood lot which was used as a coven location. It was last used by Uri Clef because Louis Cypher was already taken. Two guys who are introduced with the film half over also jump the fence and go there and together the initial of the collective first names spell out "Lucifer" as if that means something. Meanwhile someone on a bike, who may or may not be Nicolas Cage, is in the woods going after the kids.

Yes the whole film was a build up to the girls going to the woods, crowding together in a tent, then running around with a couple of boys. No real special effects other than that CG fire thing. I kept waiting for things to happen then they rolled the credits which claimed the local coven attempted to keep them from shooting there. It is ashamed they didn't succeed.

Guide: F-bomb. No sex. No nudity. No Fairuza Balk. Be careful quoting Arthur Brown.

The Coven is worth watching twice

[cochranefaithful · 10/10 · 17 March 2015]

Spoiler alert: this review deals with the plot and its interpretation from a Cochranian Wiccan perspective.

The Coven superficially appears similar to the Blair Witch Project, complete with shaky camera work and scary moments. In reality it is a completely different, and far deeper film, which deals with theological conflicts within modern Traditional Witchcraft.

The plot deals with events surrounding those faithful to the Wicca of Robert Cochrane who founded the Thames Valley Coven in 1962 and ran it until his death in 1966. It deals with Cochranian Wicca in the present day. The film opens with a map of Queen's Wood in Highgate. The scene then moves to a girls school. Mr Shears (Dexter Fletcher: Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) is giving a lesson about Wicca holding a red leather bound book. He gives an explanation asking 'Is Wicca a religion or little more than devil worship'. He then explains about Robert Cochrane who 'founded a Wicca coven as recently as the 1960s'. He is interrupted by a woman who comes into the class introducing herself as Mrs Belial, a supply teacher. She says that he needs to see the headmaster. He leaves and she takes over, explaining that there was a Wiccan leader Uri Clef who disappeared recently with seven followers. Mr Shears finds the headmaster away and returns to the classroom but Mrs Belial has disappeared. Five of the girls in the class decide to go into the woods at Halloween.

Meanwhile Mrs Belial is seen gardening where she cuts herself on a rose. She sucks the blood enjoying the taste, appearing to be the embodiment of evil. On a nearby bench is a blue book. The girls head to the Queen's Wood by bus.

The film then cuts to the lounge of one of the other girls in the class, Eve. She has found a nursery rhyme. Her tutor comes and sits next to her and explains that it is about the devil. He also has a blue book that he places next to him on the sofa. His face is not seen again. Meanwhile Mrs Belial is seen alone eating the raw meat of a stag. She has some soil and foliage on which paper figures are laid and is doing a harmful magic spell on the seven in the wood. The biker appears again and picks off those in the wood. Clef is seen as a skeleton, apparently long dead. Near the end a coven which is in the woods is seen dancing in the distance.

The plot is fairly involved and many of the key points are seen fleetingly. The beauty of the film is that the clues are hidden and the references to Cochranian Wicca are real. Understanding these allows the plot and the murderous biker's identity to be resolved. The first key to understanding the film is the relationship between the key characters. The plot deals with Cochranian Wicca which is one of the denominations of Wicca. Cochranianism itself has its own divisions. Cochranians are predominantly gnostic, however they split between those who give primacy to Lileth-Lucifer and those for whom Sophia or Wisdom is the primary deity. Those who follow Sophia do not revere Lucifer, instead pairing her with a horse-stag of local tradition sometimes called Morvarch or with a name linked to local deities. In this film the murderous faction, headed by Mrs Belial, are the Luciferians and Uri Clef's followers revere Sophia-Morvarch. To the Morvarchians the horse-stag is the god of the Old Ways.

The Luciferians are portrayed as the killers in the film. In Cochranianism red and blue are used to mean life and death respectively. As Cochrane wrote "Her vesture half of blue, half of red. Life and death are in her two hands". Mr Shears is promoting Cochranian Wicca as the main tradition and appears to be a Morvarchian Cochranian sympathetic to Clef. He has a red book, signifying life. Meanwhile Mrs Belial and Eve's tutor have blue books that signify death. The fact that they have similar books ties them to being part of the same coven and opposed to Clef. Later Mrs Belial is seen eating raw venison, literally eating the god of the Morvarchian Cochranians. They appear as Luciferian Cochranians. The murderous biker is working with Mrs Belial. Eve's tutor has a blue book and the fact that he is in the vicinity of the woods implies that he is the biker, whose face is never seen.

The question remains 'why was it necessary for Clef to be killed by the Luciferians ?' Clef was said to be building a Wiccan army which would damage the fabric of society. This would be a threat to Luciferians who would see the primacy of Morvarchian Cochranianism as undesirable. By killing him they could ensure that Lucifer remains the primary object of worship. This film is, of course, loved by Morvarchian Cochranians who see themselves portrayed as the good folk.

In 500BC Aeschylus produced a play and took part in its first performance. As he spoke his lines there was an outcry from the audience with the declaration "he reveals the holy mysteries". He showed that he had never been initiated and could not therefore reveal them. The makers of the film will doubtless state that they too have not been initiated and cannot have revealed the mysteries of Cochranianism. None the less the sub rosa mysteries of Cochranian Wicca are revealed for those who look, but then as Cochrane stated "There is no secret in the world that cannot be discovered, if the recipient is ready to listen to it – since the very air itself carries memory and knowledge". The film makers have produced a piece of extraordinary depth not seen before in presentation of modern Witchcraft. It is a film that will stand the test of time and become a classic example of its genre.

Whats all this brouhaha

[gpeltz · 7/10 · 6 April 2015]

The movie is called Coven (2015) It's a UK film, Directed with stylish flair by John Mackie. The story was by Jayney Mackie. Among the lead stars are Cloe and Holly Mackie. Spoiler Alert; The movie deals with pagan ritual, satanic invocations, and seven innocents sent to their doom, maybe, A lot more is implied, then stated. Although bearing a close similarity to Blair Witch Project, this movie managed to play with the "found footage" elements, but not be captive to them.

Unfortunately the upload I viewed at you tube, was faulty, particularly with the sound, and occasionally the picture. It was hard to understand, Listening to a group of adolescent girls chirping away would be hard enough to understand. Their accents didn't help, If the girls dialog was scripted, it would surprise me.

There are many flaws here, the motorcycle in the woods, chasing the kids, grew tiresome. One thing is clear, there is a lot going on, and not all of it is explained. Apparently, Queens Woods, where it was filmed is the site of pagan coven activity, Some spooky stuff here, but not for everyone. Sven out of Ten "Something is happening here, but you don't know what it is, do you? Mr Jones" Stars.

Dire nonsense

[jackstupidjack · 1/10 · 17 August 2015]

I hope none of the Mackie clan are allowed near a film unit or a typewriter again if this is the sort of dross they produce. Grange Hill with Neopagan mythos strewn clumsily throughout was the end result. Dexter Fletcher's turn and the stunning Magda Rodriguez as the sinister Mrs Belial are about the only saving graces in this steaming heap of dross. All in all you'd be better off watching some old Dramarama episodes on You Tube or Children of the Stones than this rubbish if you're looking for a real British chill. It is a shame as there is so much potential in ancient British Pagan folklore which film makers only seem to totally make a total hash of.

Fantasy Horror worth a watch

[greatmilitaryraidsltd · 8/10 · 28 October 2015]

Well actually this is a cleverly thought out plot obviously aimed at a younger audience but somehow ended up a '15' ?? Unsure why as there's no bloody horror and apart from bad language - younger kids can watch it. I can only assume that a lot of people didn't 'get it'? This film needs you to pay attention as otherwise you will miss what is happening. The way the girl in the old fairytale merges into the Supply Teacher Mrs Belial...there are clues throughout and the Tutor and Eve talking about the old poem and then Eddy....if you watch properly it all comes together rather nicely and makes sense. I really enjoyed it and in fact I just bought a copy for my friend's daughter.

If you want a 'seen it all before' horror tale then it's not for you. But if you want to be kept on your toes - ignore the negative comments and watch this film.

Also I didn't realise IMDb was a forum for throwing bullying insults at people? Guys you really should check all user comments before posting them.

Pretty entertaining

[andinevernu · 7/10 · 28 October 2015]

I don't understand all the negativity here? I watched this with my friend's twelve year old niece over the weekend. I found it really entertaining with some good production value. The kids seemed real to me and I was surprised to google that the Coven really exists in Queens Wood and really does have an interesting path surrounding Paganism. It really is built on a burial site too. I did check it out on Wikipedia and whoever wrote up on there missed the plot completely. Belial means: Prince of the Devil so obviously the supply teacher is a baddie. My only criticism would be that maybe the clues were underplayed - as obviously an awful lot of people 'missed' the entire convoluted plot line. My advice would be to watch it again and enlighten yourselves.

Enigmatic and mysterious, dumb people wont get it!!

[johnxnewcombe · 8/10 · 23 March 2015]

Watched this with my daughter and I think liked it more than she did! There's some pretty deep stuff in it that many just won't get. A spooky babes lost in the woods film on the surface, there are plainly undertones of witch-folk history and connections not obvious at a glance. I liked the way it uses a mixture of invented stuff with reality, it helps convince you that this place (apparently shot in a real coven) is really odd. It's not without flaws however, and the fairly low-budget nature of it struggles now and then to keep up with glossier Hollywood films, but great if you like a bit of history with your mystery.

Creepy spooky girly flicky

[Tashaminha · 7/10 · 23 March 2015]

Wot is it with girls and woods!!!!! Surely by now ALL us girls know that for Whatever Reason they go into the woods At Night!! they're gonna come a cropper. And boy do these girls get it... Even tho they know things had gone down there before they STILL decide to camp out! On Halloween!! Well I mean whaddya expect! (Me an my sisters are going to go to the woods it was done in to see if WE can see any witches) I like Dexter Fletcher he's cute in a crinkly sorta way, but he gives his class a bum steer it seems - straight into the woods..... Lots of weird witchy things happen and - well you gotta watch it yourself! Just don't forget girlies - Playtime is Over ....... (Watch out for the bogeybike) xx

Decent horror, aimed at youngsters

[joshuat-05276 · 9/10 · 6 November 2015]

An enjoyable movie-- although viewers expecting a typical no-story jump-scare such as Paranomal Activity or any of the recent 'horror' movies should look elsewhere. It's got a fairly well fleshed out story, but is clearly not that high budget. £615,000 estimated? There is no way on earth this movie had that high a budget!

The acting is a little wooden in parts, but I suppose that is typical of any young actor / actress. I thought the locations used throughout the movie were great. One issue I had was with some seemingly unnecessary special effects, they don't detract from the movie as a whole though.

In my opinion, it's very good for what it is; a non-gore scary movie aimed at children/teens. My daughters enjoyed it quite a bit!

Actually quite a complex film

[tonystewart-251-639389 · 7/10 · 23 March 2015]

Not the usual in-your-face horror this! I think some of the complexities will be lost on the average viewer. Checked it out one night with a few hours to kill as I live N London and I've always been interested in witchy stuff and really enjoyed it! Trying to unravel the threads of the mystery that unfolds will probably be too much for some, but it's obviously based on real witch/Wiccan lore and happenings as a lot of it checks out. The kids acting are all pretty inexperienced it seems but have a kinda simple charm about them. I'd like to have seen a bit more of some of the characters as I think certain aspects could be explained by them, but - again it sort of adds to the mystery. Spooky and creepy rather than bloody and gory (apart from one nightmare bit in the tent) it mixes real stuff with fantasy but keeps a sense of hidden menace. All in all worth a watch especially if you like a bit of real mystery stuff woven in to your entertainment.

I quite liked it

[sonjanashpr · 7/10 · 11 March 2015]

Well I quite enjoyed it having grown up in North London and I like a bit of History. A bunch of kids being naughty in the woods end up coming to a sticky but mystical end. The story is a bit deeper than most, for example, the connection with the lovely 'Mrs Belial' and the Devil...which is explained later in a pub scene. The lighting is great. It's clearly aimed at a younger audience as there is no gore to speak of. The music works really well too and I think the kids are believable and they all look pretty good. This film doesn't claim to be a blockbuster but it is light entertainment with some historical fact (I googled it) and some good spooks.

Enjoyable Teenage Spook

[jaynesaunders · 7/10 · 14 March 2015]

My daughter wanted to watch this as she is a massive fan of the Mackie twins and so I bought it for her. I also watched it with her! I found it to be very watchable. I wasn't aware of the history that surrounds Queen's Wood in Highgate and nor did I know there was an actual 'Coven'. Having since checked out this information from the film online, I found all this to be completely accurate, including the information delivered by Dexter Fletcher about the Cochrane Wicca. The kids were entertaining. A bunch of naughty girls planning a sleepover without parental consent. My daughter loved it - and so I give it a thumbs up. Finally someone has delivered a spooky tale with real history involved.

It was...ok?

[GregTheStopSign95 · 6/10 · 5 October 2023]

I'll admit, I only watched this because Dexter Fletcher is in it, and I've been a fan of his since Press Gang. It ended up being...ok, I guess?

The acting isn't great, the symbolism can be SUPER blunt, like getting hit in the knee with a baseball bat (especially the relief teacher's name - Mrs Belial? REALLY?) but the effects are pretty good for such a low budget movie.

Really surprising, though, is learning that a lot of what happens in the movie is based on/inspired by actual events. Including the fact that the filmmakers actually filmed at a real-life site of Wiccan activity. It sucked, though, to read that they were often chased away from said site. The least they could have done is to ask permission and take whatever care and precautions were suggested. This would have suggested that they at least respected the witches' beliefs even if they didn't think any of it was legit.

Still, there are worse movies you could watch.

Worth Watching this twice

[bonniebabyblu · 7/10 · 29 April 2016]

So many mixed reviews here but the most helpful was the Cochrane Faithful? Thanks to them I decided to watch and I'm glad I did. Obviously aimed at a younger audience (why did it get a 15????) this was a spooky little film with a deeper underlying tale to tell. I googled some of this and found out it really is based on some true stuff. The kids seemed to be 'real' and not acting. Typical oikish young teens. The woods looked amazing - not over lit! I don't understand the negative reviews? Maybe those that wrote them didn't understand the underlying tale?? And some reviews here look just like a case of bad eggs! I found it enjoyable and quite an incredible achievement for such a low budget.