‘The Severed Sun’ Review – A Beautiful Yet Disappointing Folk Horror Story [Fantastic Fest 2024]

Folk horror is often the most elusive branch of the horror genre due to its lack of explanation, open-endedness, and dreamlike sequences that may not help us draw explicit conclusions about what exactly is happening. It’s as if these films want to evoke a vibe rather than tell a story. This isn’t a knock on the genre, more of a feature. Filmmakers can do a lot of cool things within the genre as they may not necessarily be as bound to a straightforward narrative as they are in other formats. Symbolism and allegory abound in folk horror, and it’s a fun playground for writers and directors to work in. There’s often a religious element to these films, as is the case with Dean Puckett’s The Severed Sun which premiered at this year’s Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas.

The Severed Sun follows a young woman, Magpie (Emma Appleton), in a small, secluded religious community after the mysterious death of her much older husband. Magpie’s father is the pastor and leader of the community, and from the opening moments, you can tell there is tension between them. Magpie constantly rebels against the community’s religious standards causing strife for her father and the other pious folks around her. Suspicion surrounds her every move, and people are starting to question whether she was involved in her husband’s death. Rumors of some sort of beast in the woods cause strife for the townspeople as well, with everything escalating into hysteria as the story unfolds. 

The film leans heavily into its themes of patriarchal and religious control, favoring the protection of men over women and children and ignoring any wrongdoing done at the latter’s expense. As evidence of widespread abuse by husbands and fathers makes its way to the public eye, more is done to downplay these actions than to protect the innocent. Magpie provokes other women to speak up and take action only leading to pushback from the rest of the village. Puckett’s attempt at a modern rendition of a Salem Witch-style story is admirable but fails in execution. This film says nothing new about the female experience and has little depth past what we can see on the surface. 

Despite the script’s shortfalls, the technical filmmaking is masterfully done. The color palette involves deep, rich hues of blue and gray that add a shroud of mystery over the village. Black is reserved for appearances of the beast, which pops up behind characters frequently as it torments the abusers in both daytime and slumber. Much of this film takes place in the daytime and is an interesting visual opposite to something like Ari Aster’s Midsommar which is known for its brighter colors and everlasting sunlight. Ian Forbes’ cinematography combines the magic of movie lighting and framing with the plain beauty of the British wilderness. Filming took place on location on Cornwall’s Bodmin Moor and the filmmakers used this to their great advantage, crafting a beautifully shot landscape that captures the essence of the story they’re trying to tell. 

The costumes are simple, yet effective, embodying the conservative and reserved culture found in the village itself. Modest dress aims to remove any hopes of promiscuity and wrongdoing, but these only help so much when the man of the house can’t be controlled. The cultural specifics of this kind of religious community seem very foreign to us in the modern world, but these models aren’t gone. They’ve just adapted to the times. Of course, there are people in certain parts of the world who still live like this more specifically, but the overly conservative values that restrict people, namely women, still exist in all reaches of our world. It has the same function but with a different look.

Dean Puckett’s The Severed Sun is a decent folk horror film that beats its message over the head a little too forcefully without saying anything new. The exquisite technical achievements are let down by a poor story with no memorable performances.

The Severed Sun had its World Premiere at Fantastic Fest 2024. 

Director: Dean Puckett

Writer: Dean Puckett

Rated: NR

Runtime: 80m