The director of Hood Witch, Saïd Belktibia, co-wrote the screenplay with Louis Penicaut. The French film (original title: Roqya) world premiered in Portugal at MOTELX, the Lisbon International Horror Film Festival in September 2023, and then at the Sitges Film Festival (Spain) the following month. It was screened at the SXSW Film & Television Festival in March 2024. The genres for the film on IMDb are listed as action, drama, horror and thriller. There are elements of all these genres that may or may not work for all film fans, as the story does change along the way. My takeaway from this film is that it is an intense drama about the main character, Nour (Golshifteh Farahani), who is separated from her partner/husband, Dylan (Jérémy Ferrari); she has custody or primary care for their young teen son, Amine (Amine Zariouhi). Although some of the opening scenes heavily emphasize her ability to secure exotic animals and get them through customs rather magically, the viewer is left to wonder why she is in this profession.
The script could have used some backstory about this. There is Western medicine, and yet, some people are raised with ritual belief in healing instead of the pharma and other expensive medical treatments. The healers are versed in using animals and plants for the cures they provide for those who believe in alternative treatment. These practices are known worldwide and in different cultures dating back centuries. As is commonly known, the healers are often called witches and discredited. Look at the number of films over the years about the people hunted. Nour is shown as knowing what the healers need and how to acquire the products for a fee. She may have the knowledge to heal, but this hustle provides fast money for her. Most of the scenes she has with Dylan (her ex) show that, without a doubt, she wants to stay out and away from him and the seedy side of Paris they live in.
Her use of technology to raise awareness of alternative healing/healers, including testimonies, becomes successful. Unfortunately, all it takes is one situation to go tragically wrong and the individual decides to blame Nour. The mass hysteria begins, and so does the “witch hunt.” This hunt expands from the neighbors in the hood to religious leaders who claim they have answers. Those answers boil down to fancy “clinics” where people submit to other rituals. What is very evident in the film is the ritual belief healing that people have, religious or otherwise.
Nour was filling a need, and the money she made from it ultimately met her goal of living differently – for her son’s future. Attacking her is one thing, but not her son. When they do, her rage makes her take action to protect him. And yes, there is plenty of thrilling action in the streets and buildings of Paris. The audience knows there is nothing going to stop her.
Golshifteh Farahani is a very capable actress who provides such a magnificent performance that it is worth sitting through the few slight jagged edges of the script that some may find. Farahani is not new to acting, as is noted in her many credits listed in IMDb. She starred in Paterson with Adam Driver (2016) and, most recently, the Apple TV+ series “Invasion” (2021-2025). Look her up.
Cast: Denis Lavant, Alexis Manenti, Karim Belkhadra, Issaka Sawadogo, among others
Hood Witch is in select theaters and on digital from March 21, 2025.
Source: Dark Sky Films