Imagine waiting years for a reunion of two beloved stars, only to be met with a film that feels like a drawn-out nightmare punctuated by one gloriously unhinged performance. Sophie Turner and Kit Harington’s return to the screen together in The Dreadful is a haunting experience—but not in the way you’d hope. The medieval horror flick, inspired by the 1964 Japanese classic Onibaba, promises folklore thrills but delivers more yawns than chills. Yet, amid the tedium, Marcia Gay Harden’s jaw-dropping turn as a knife-wielding, throat-slashing grandmother might just save this shipwreck of a movie. But here’s where it gets controversial: Can a single performance redeem an entire film? Let’s dive in.
Set in 15th-century England, The Dreadful follows Anne (Sophie Turner), a woman scraping by in a bleak countryside hamlet with her tyrannical mother-in-law, Morwen (Harden). Years ago, Anne’s husband, Seamus, left to fight in the War of the Roses with his childhood friend Jago (Kit Harington). When Jago returns alone, bearing news of Seamus’ death, grief quickly morphs into a forbidden romance. But Morwen—starving, scheming, and very deadly—won’t let the couple escape her clutches. Meanwhile, a mysterious armored knight stalks the woods, and Morwen’s gruesome killing spree (targeting priests, among others) adds to the chaos. And this is the part most people miss: The film’s attempts to blend folk horror with psychological dread collapse under the weight of its own ambition.
Marcia Gay Harden, though, is a force of nature. Channeling a feral energy reminiscent of Silence of the Lambs’ Hannibal Lecter (if he swapped cannibalism for witchy vengeance), her Morwen is equal parts terrifying and mesmerizing. Her guttural voice, wild-eyed intensity, and sheer bloodthirstiness feel ripped from a 1960s Hammer horror classic—a stark contrast to the film’s modern-day lethargy. Without her, The Dreadful would be a total write-off. But can you truly enjoy a movie when its standout character is a homicidal crone?
Director Natasha Kermani (Lucky) aims for atmospheric dread, and the fog-drenched Cornish landscapes deliver. Yet the film’s pacing is glacial, its plot riddled with holes. Turner and Harington’s chemistry? Flatter than a stale loaf of medieval bread—hardly surprising given their Game of Thrones history as onscreen siblings. (Turner’s real-life gagging during love scenes is the most authentic emotion in the film.) The armored knight, meant to be a chilling symbol of doom, ends up looking like a misplaced prop from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. And the final-act pivot to supernatural nonsense? A lazy cop-out that undermines every eerie moment beforehand. Here’s the kicker: Kermani leans on the tired horror trope of ‘it was all a dream,’ a cliché so overused it deserves retirement.
So, does The Dreadful deserve your time? If you’re a Harden fan, absolutely. Her performance alone warrants a spin. But if you’re craving the next Hereditary or The Witch, prepare for disappointment. Let’s stir the pot: Could this film have worked with a different cast? Would a grittier Anne (Turner’s glowing complexion clashes with her ‘starving peasant’ role) or a less self-serious script have salvaged the story? And should Morwen get her own spin-off? Drop your hot takes below—this is one conversation that needs your voice.
