The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw’s take on unwanted childbirth and self-induced miscarriage or abortion is perhaps bigger in scope than Audrey’s own primary witchcraft plot. Reminiscent of Roman Polanski’s 1968 horror film, Rosemary’s Baby.
This article contains spoilers for The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw which was screened at this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival.
You’ll find few scenes in cinema this year that’ll leave an impression like Hannah Emily Anderson’s Bridget Dwyer tearfully attempting a self-induced miscarriage in secret. In shame. In despair. Picture a wife who’d just lost her young son trying to quietly, gently bring up the idea of an abortion with her husband, Colm Dwyer [Jared Abrahamson]… You can guess the immediate reaction following would not exactly be cupid’s arrow for the couple.
After pleading forgiveness from her bewildered husband rushing away from the situation… Bridget is left all alone in the time she needs someone the most. Regret and embarrassment washes over her, as she silently wonders if bringing it up makes her a terrible person. Bridget wishes to take back her words but not her feelings about the child she’s carrying.
Thus, she takes a farm tool and attempts to abort the child herself in a rather primitive fashion, with no doctor present. The moment goes a long way in showing you can’t force someone to be a mother against her will. Not out of love, a sense of communal morality, or anything else.
Bridget is discovered in a pool of her own blood but the baby survives after a doctor’s examination. However, instead of a real heart-to-heart husband & wife talk about the child she’s carrying or even the Doctor’s bedside medical advice. Bridget is given some type of sedative, so she doesn’t attempt anything again ‘while left to her own devices’. Her personal will subdued in lieu of the wants of others.
At the film’s conclusion, in a rather overt Rosemary’s Baby style twist, Bridget ends up being right all along about the child. Everyone in the room scream in sheer terror after her delivery, and while not explicitly shown on screen, you can be certain the ‘devil’ was in the room. The devil was delievered.
The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw: Synopsis, Trailer, and Release Date
A mother and daughter are suspected of witchcraft by their devout rural community.
The Curse of Audrey Earnshaw is scheduled for an October 6, 2020 release. Learn more about Fantasia Film Festival 2020 at this link.
Be sure to read The Natural Aristocrat®’s exclusive interview with actress Hannah Emily Anderson on The Purge’s Jenna Betancourt!
Fan of the horror film genre? Take a look at Fantasia 2020: Xander Berkeley steals show in ‘The Dark and the Wicked’!
Check out more of The Natural Aristocrat®’s coverage of Fantasia 2020 in the Fantasia International Film Festival 2020 Articles section.
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