Film Report: Curse of the Witching Tree (2015)

Curse of the Witching Tree (UK 2015)
Director: James Crow

Plot Outline: Amber Thorson (Sarah Rose Denton) is a mother of two who is having to cope alone while her husband is in hospital in a coma from which he is unlikely to recover.  Amber rashly decides to buy a large 800-year-old farmhouse in Kent called St Jonas Farm and moves in with her student daughter Emma (Lucy Clarvis) and 12-year-old son Jake (Lawrence Weller). Unfortunately for all concerned the farm has a bad history and was the site of tragic events many centuries ago when a medieval witch called Isobel Redwood was hanged from a nearby tree accused of killing her young son Ulrich.  Isobel cursed the tree and all children who touch it - a curse which has not diminished with the passage of years.  Jake unwittingly touches that certain tree while hiding in the woods from a gang of school bullies and brings back to the farmhouse vengeful spirits of the long dead children who proceed to make the lives of its occupants a living nightmare ...

Curse of the Witching Tree is a suspenseful horror film from writer, producer and director James Crow.  This is his feature debut after making a number of short films.  It was co-produced by actress turned producer Lucinda Rhodes(-Flaherty) who used to play the sister in Cavegirl. There are no star names amongst the cast although Gary Lineker's wife Danielle Bux makes a brief appearance as the evil (young) witch.  Although Sarah Rose Denton heads the cast, the main action tends to centre more on the plight of her two children Emma and Jake.  Emma is said to be a student and although her precise age is not mentioned she is probably in her adult teens.

The nudity in the film comes from co-lead Lucy Clarvis in two scenes, one of which is probably the best bath scene you're ever likely to see.  She is a relatively new actress from Lincolnshire in her mid-20s with one other 2015 horror feature on her credits and a number of shorts.

Lucy Clarvis in Curse of the Witching Tree

The main scene shows Emma (Lucy Clarvis) topless having a peaceful bath after some upsetting events only to have her peace shattered by a phantom presence.  The other scene is later on when she is seen marginally topless while preparing to take a shower.