Frewaka
Fréwaka
After a personal tragedy, nurse Shoo is sent to a remote village to care for a woman with agoraphobia. The woman fears her neighbors as much as she fears the "Na Sídhe," evil beings who she claims kidnapped her decades ago. As a strangely deep connection develops between the two women, Shoo becomes increasingly consumed by the old woman's paranoia, rituals, and superstitions, until she is finally forced to confront the horrors of her own past.
James Saenz reviewed
October 11, 2025•
“you don’t know what punishment is.”
fréwaka depicts generational trauma, hereditary illness and religious oppression through a fae haunting that feels like it’s constantly roiling between your feet and underneath your skin. pacts with the devil (whether judeo-christian or pagan or some secret third thing) never end well, and the price paid is immeasurably steeper than the reward gained.
what i find most compelling about this film is its portrayal of the subjugation of women, regardless of the culture. peig is kidnapped and forced to abandon her child to the indigenous entities plaguing her, sacrificing her future for her freedom. shoob’s mother abuses her in an attempt to force christian piety upon her, a clear allusion to the suffering the irish endured at the hands of catholic imperialism; the magdalene laundries that plagued ireland for centuries are even referenced multiple times by different characters. every aspect of the narrative is an examination of the oppressive systems at play and the victims relegated to navigating them; the ending is especially so bleak, with no clear way forward that shatters these systems. opposing religions or ideologies often overlap in overlooked places, and the same demographics often receive the short end of the stick.
there are also several moments that feel like homage to folk horror of the past, such as the original the wicker man, which feel thematically relevant without ever encroaching upon fraudulent. i hope i grow to like this more on subsequent viewings, because the actual execution of a lot of these themes left a lot to be desired on my part.
James Saenz reviewed
October 11, 2025•
“you don’t know what punishment is.”
fréwaka depicts generational trauma, hereditary illness and religious oppression through a fae haunting that feels like it’s constantly roiling between your feet and underneath your skin. pacts with the devil (whether judeo-christian or pagan or some secret third thing) never end well, and the price paid is immeasurably steeper than the reward gained.
what i find most compelling about this film is its portrayal of the subjugation of women, regardless of the culture. peig is kidnapped and forced to abandon her child to the indigenous entities plaguing her, sacrificing her future for her freedom. shoob’s mother abuses her in an attempt to force christian piety upon her, a clear allusion to the suffering the irish endured at the hands of catholic imperialism; the magdalene laundries that plagued ireland for centuries are even referenced multiple times by different characters. every aspect of the narrative is an examination of the oppressive systems at play and the victims relegated to navigating them; the ending is especially so bleak, with no clear way forward that shatters these systems. opposing religions or ideologies often overlap in overlooked places, and the same demographics often receive the short end of the stick.
there are also several moments that feel like homage to folk horror of the past, such as the original the wicker man, which feel thematically relevant without ever encroaching upon fraudulent. i hope i grow to like this more on subsequent viewings, because the actual execution of a lot of these themes left a lot to be desired on my part.
