Lily Grace: A Witch Story

Director - Wes Miller (Prayer Never Fails)
Starring - Scott Seegmiller (The Ceremony), James Palmer (The Life and Death Experiences of Young Beth Byrd), and Greg Travis (Halloween II)
Release Date - 2015
Genre - Horror/Crime
Tagline - "When she knocks, don't answer"
Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     I have always found any film centered around witches to be fascinating.  Since a young age I was fascinated with witches and the Salem witch trials.  Something about women in league with Satan putting curses and hexes on townsfolk really caught my attention.  I guess I had the film Hocus Pocus to thank for that where it was just released around that time.  Sadly, we never get that many films involving witches.  A few weeks ago I received the film Lily Grace: A Witch Story to check out.  I was pretty excited to check this one out because it is rare for me to get a witch film to check out.  I tossed it on my shelf and as soon as I had the time to check it out I tossed it in without hesitation.  

     The film follows a young man who visits his father's home after his death.  He is going through his things when he receives a strange visit from a woman who he believes to be a witch and suspects that she is involved in his death.  He stays in his father's home to investigate her connection to his demise when he crosses paths with another young man who is looking for a purse that is buried on the property.  His presence brings about three more men looking for him which leads to a fight for survival.

     I love when a story that focuses on witches gives the viewer some portions of the witch's back story along with connections to Salem and the witch trials.  Films like the Lords of Salem, Hocus Pocus, Witch's Brew, Witchfinder General, and The Witches are just a few that do so in one way or another.  Sadly, Lily Grace: A Witch Story did none of that and the witch story we got could have easily been replaced with a ghost tale.  The acting in this one is actually decent considering the story they had before them.  Most of the cast has a hard time trying to find the correct emotions they need for the scene but that could be blames on how confusing the story actually is.  The story for this one is one of the most confusing watches I have ever seen on film.  The film would have been a pretty solid crime drama following the home invasion sub-genre but chose to add the witch elements to the film which was completely out of place.  The film needed to be edited heavily and re-wrote in order to make this one worth watching.  Finally, those of you looking for great kills and amazing gore will be disappointed.  The film virtually has no kills and those looking for deaths at the hands of a witch will surely be upset.  Overall, Lily Grace: A Witch Story is a very disappointing piece of film.  The film is mostly set up like a crime drama with a group of thugs looking for one of their own but tosses in elements of horror with the witch angle and completely ruins the flow of the film.  This is one I can not recommend.