IR Film Review: THE LAST SACRIFICE [Shudder]

The aspect of witchcraft in a modern setting is balanced in ideas of perspective and fun but many times not in the actual practical intent of witchcraft in the sense. "The Last Sacrifice" [Shudder] speaks to a murder of Charles Walton in 1945 under mysterious circumstances under consideration or rumors of witchcraft. He was a simple farmer apparently in a quite space of England but he was found pitchforked and the case per se was never solved. The documentary explores different parts of the story including the town's supposed cover up and an investigator's progression of the case some years later. But what the film really dives into is the British underbelly of folklore amidst the resurgence of interest in the occult in the 1960s. What this speaks to in certain ways is the women's liberation movement and how it changed concepts in a more buttoned down society in context of sexual freedom. Some of these integrations had to do, the documentary states, with women being in control of their bodies and proud of their bodies. The film does explain that the 60s free love movement built into the idea of exploitation but as the women's choice per se. Of course this could specifically be a tagged result of brainwashing. Hollywood, specifically Hammer Films, paralleled certain ideas of what was going on in the underground movement but it could have been just a fantasy movement. Whether it was real or not is the question.

The documentary uses supposed real life witch experts and people who were involved in these would-be cults. Some believe certain parts true while others were posing trying to signify themselves in some importance or inflation of their ego (which is definitely a possibility). The reality is that if anything was operating in this space as real, it likely would be operating beneath whatever these people gathering naked around a bonfire were. As films like "Dracula 1972 A.D." starring Christopher Lee came to bear, the docu shows that in real life there were sightings of what people believed were the real thing. Now in an age before social media, this was a bit of a different thing but different programs at the time on British Television delved into it. Many of the movies also paralleled some of the imagery pretty starkly (as art has always emulated modern culture). There likely would have been a fear of regressing into the dark ages in British society...but this was not a black hole of history like that. Media keeps certain aspects in check until it really doesn't. The film also brings up another parallel story of a person killed by a pitchfork back in the late 1800s. The question is floated if this could have been Walton as well but also the reasoning behind the killing (but again pushed by what to do when confronted with what might have been considered "Witchcraft"). But like any myth, the problem is actionable evidence. People love a good story but many times it is about how the puzzle pieces fit together. It is cool to see a documentary like this on Shudder since there are many cool docs in this space that sometimes don't get distribution. For that reason, it is great to see this type of doc on Shudder, which would have to be cut in many ways to play on regular TV get an audience. B

By Tim Wassberg