Post "The Complete Guide to the Witch" by "Novum " from patreon

Kelly S. Moyes

Interview with the Witch's costume designer, Linda Muir, in case anyone is interested: https://youtu.be/N4I3E9OmQUg?si=TgWRNUK4HicBhb_U

Liam McLaughlin

Thanks for the response man! I hope you don’t hold back the humour in future videos haha. As for the music I make, it’s an exceptionally nerdy niche cross between instrumental jazz/rock fusion and I guess video game music(?) https://youtu.be/sfMg17hAqCQ?si=NRe0tSfxEzAhWaYr Check it out bud I’d really appreciate it

Jess

Very possible it's just me experiencing face pareidolia, but figured I'd throw it out there 😅

petitquasson

Wow, what an absolutely insane and heartbreaking insight into that period. Like you mention, we always associate ancient Greeks with homosexuality, but this extent has never been covered in any of my classes or reading. Thank you so much for your in depth response, and I'll definitely check out the further reading. You have a serious gift for teaching through these deep dives. I look forward to every video and always know I'm going to learn something, but I am constantly blown away at your ability to weave history and classic literature into the foundation of these concepts used for a piece of media. It's everything I wish I would have gotten in my college classes. Thank you for all your hard work. I'm very happy to support your Patreon, and I hope your work blows up so you never have to work another day in your life (outside of making these videos.)

Novum

Thank you so much dude! You're an absolute legend for playing the YT version alongside too. What sort of music do you make? I don't want to put you on the spot but if you want to link it here I'm sure we'd all like to see! I won't put them on blast either because we haven't discussed it, but there's a couple of other people here working on (very impressive) creative projects and I'd encourage everyone to show off their passions here! I think the one thing we all have in common is a love for art. Really glad you found it funny dude, I'll be telling all my friends that you feel that way because they are FUCKING TIRED OF ME. I actually cut a lot of jokes out of this one because they were too rough, I do have quite a dark sense of humour and I knew that's something we'd be looking at a lot with BIA. A film in which Ari Aster asks the question 'what's the weirdest way I can make someone belly laugh'. I'm sorry to admit that for me it's near the end when SOMEONE gets carried out of a bedroom. Couldn't help myself because it's just so brutally done.

Novum

That's so cool to hear dude, helping people with their research and perhaps even getting cited in their work was my absolute pipedream when I started this channel and it's something people are telling me more and more. Everything else is just gravy that I truly never expected. And yeah, I'd never joined anyone's Patreon before either but I have started supporting a few people that are doing great work on Youtube since receiving support from you guys, and I think it's a wonderful tool for supporting creators. It's literally allowing me to do what I love, so all of your support isn't just appreciated, it's one of those rare instances that I'm truly speechless over.

Novum

You have no idea how happy that makes me. If I get one person to check out Ari Aster's work I'd say it's been worthwhile. To me there is no comparison between Aster/Eggers and other filmmakers currently, although there are many more that I love dearly, these two have just separated themselves from the pack. Aster in what he's capable of achieving and Eggers in what he desires to achieve. And that's not shade on either, I just find myself impressed by finding out what-Aster--did and what Eggers dreams up and tries to crystallize into something people can take in. They're very different so it's likely a useless comparison, but that's how I'd explain it. I haven't heard of Atun-Shei but I'll check it out. I've visited Sudbury before but I'm not aware of it's witchstory!

Novum

You're far too kind, that's extremely reassuring, thank you.

Novum

Interesting, I didn't see that but I also didn't see any of the others until I did so I'll check it out!

Novum

That's so awesome to hear Tiffany. Hawthorne is an absolute gift to American literature. I never really got on with Mark Twain, Fitzgerald, really all the ones I was forced to read in Lit classes, but when we got to Hawthorne I was all in. Hence why he appears here and in the Midsommar vid! Really glad you enjoyed it.

Novum

To me that just speaks to how Thomasin is being framed by the forces of darkness. To me Thomasin would never have attacked her family for any reason other than saving her own life - and even then we have the question of the blood - has she somehow been poisoned into more devilish behaviour? But you're not wrong to point it out and the ambiguity is certainly intentional. If it hadn't been for that definite mortar and pestle sound upon the twins fate being mentioned, I likely would have shown more parity towards accusing Thomasin too. I think the overarching message has to be one of FALSE accusation that is proven correct once Thomasin has been forced towards the satanic. If the accusations aren't false to begin with then Eggers wouldn't really be saying anything about this horrendous era, we'd be entirely in the realm of horror fiction. But, I think you can still have that all and just have Thomasin snap slightly sooner off-camera, so I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with that interpretation and I'd advise you run with it if it suits your reading of the film better. Ultimately meaning is personal and anyone selling you a 'take' as the only way to understand something has failed before they began!

Novum

I think I've come round on the face on the wall behind William in the attic too. I may just make a small video on *potential* hidden faces if I find the time, so thank you for pointing out another possible!

Novum

I'm very sorry to hear that Eliza, in my experience all these negative experiences do build character though. And what a wonderful thing art is for allowing us to reflect on, and grow from, those experiences. I think the term 'black sheep' is extremely fitting here and I'm kicking myself for not using it!

Novum

Oh yeah, I'm big into vampire mythos. Big into women in victorian society/literature and (even though I haven't seen it yet) I'm very aware of the plot and themes and I'm easily as confident as I was going into the VVitch, if not more so!

Novum

I think primarily because of the visual. Same reason Anya was supposed to be naked riding him backwards, this is just a very clear image in artwork of the Sabbath and that's visually what we're alluding too. In terms of in-canon/in history 'why wouldn't the devil just appear in human form': sometimes he does. But this necessitates that we're able to find and accuse this mysterious lone man, rather than animals that were reasonably prevalent. It's also worth noting that these renditions of the sabbath are extremely lurid, so fornicating with an animal is just another layer of that 'wickedness' that was being alleged. But practically for the film - because the majority of the artwork Eggers is alluding to is this image of the naked witch riding a goat backwards, or (in the case of Goya) simply women/witches surrounding a goat at the sabbath!

petitquasson

Hey Novum! You mention almost an hour in that you can't tell us on youtube how bad it gets for children around that time, right after the quote from Gobry about pagan authors describing children more like plants than humans. (52:00) Any reading you'd suggest to further explore this? It's something I never even contemplated before you mentioned it, and I am intrigued.

Andrew Gauvin

I said once before that your guide to hereditary was the best post ever made on r/hereditary and this is no different. I’m happy to support your patron. Fantastic work.

Dantelicious

I am in absolute awe of your researching skill. I already enjoyed your other videos and their tangents and deep dives a lot, but this one is especially phenomenal. Thank you so much for your work!

Casey Lewis

I have a question: why did the devil transform back to a goat after his human form helped her sign her name?

Casey Lewis

A masterpiece, a triumph. Thank you.

Victoria Sazonov- Smith

Are you excited for Nosforatu?

Eliza

I never saw the film from a "Thomasin is suspicious" viewpoint. I think it's because she's the black sheep of the family, and when you grow up a black sheep - never being believed, being blamed for things you clearly could not have done, and being mocked by siblings and parents alike - the pattern here is clear. Add those elements into the religious paranoia of the period and it's such a brilliantly tragic combination.

Kelly S. Moyes

Happy New Year, Novum! Cheers and I look forward to your next brilliant video essay!

Caroline

At 7:19:33 I swear I can see a face with a pointy upturned nose and devilish beard in the things hanging in the corner. The face in the frock is so blatant I feel like it has to be purposeful, especially in conjunction with the painting

Jessica Hudson

After seeing Nosferatu last night now I’m dying to see your guide to it in the future. Saving this to watch soon, can’t wait

Liz Jensen

Wonderful work! A (possibly) quick question- what do you make of Thomasin’s hands being bloody as she leaves the goat shed after the twins have been taken by the Witch? Katherine says “you have their blood on your hands”. Do you think Thomasin was violent toward the twins with the witch?

Tiffany Frost-Avila

I appreciate this guide so much. I’ve been studying Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown,” and I kept seeing similarities as you led up to your discussion of Hawthorne. I got that pumped “fuck, yes” feeling when you locked in on it. Beautiful work, once again! Thank you!

Novum

Hi Amanda, I really appreciate the diligence and care you've shown here in arranging these quotes. The word 'hell' appears in the bible *now*, that does not mean it was the original intention, the bible has just been iterated on, altered, but most importantly translated many times over. So let's take your first example of Matthew 5:22. The quote (as it exists in the Geneva bible) is: "And whosoever shall say, Fool, shall be worthy to be punished with (m) hell (n) fire" On the website I just got this from the footnote for (m) is: "Whereas we read here, Hell, it is in the text itself, Gehenna, which is an Hebrew word made of two, and is as much to say, as the Valley of Hinnom, which otherwise the Hebrews called Tophet; it was a place where the Israelites were went most cruelly to sacrifice their children to false gods, whereupon it was taken for a place appointed to torment the reprobates in Jeremiah 7:31 ." The footnote for (n) is "The Jews used four kinds of punishments, before their government was taken away by Herod; hanging, beheading, stoning, and burning; this is it that Christ shot at, because burning was the greatest punishment, therefore in that he maketh mention of a judgment, a council, and a fire..." So hopefully you can see there how what is being suggested is absolutely not the idea of a fiery place of eternal damnation in opposition to heaven. And we don't just have Gehenna, I believe there are also mentions/translations of Sheol/Tartarus and possibly others. Now obviously there are philosophical questions we can ask: 'if this was always a place of punishment, and it was what we built our ideas of Hell on top of, wasn't it always just Hell?'. Which is why I don't just state it flatly, this is a huge area of discourse and people have come to different conclusions. But, just going from this first example, I think it's pretty clear that's not what was being discussed here. I do wish I could go through every quote you've listed, and I encourage anyone who's not too hungover from Christmas to do that, but I am reasonably certain that you're going to find similar asterisks on all of them. Though, if memory serves there are a couple of examples that are quite fitting. Hope that helps! It was an idea that sounded silly to me too when I first heard it!

Jess

It always looked like there was a face on the rotten apple that Caleb vomits up

Amanda Manol

Fantastic work, as always. But Hell is DEFINITELY mentioned in the Bible: Matthew 5:22: Hell is a place of punishment Matthew 8:12: Hell is a place of darkness and "weeping and gnashing of teeth" Matthew 25:41: Hell is an eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels Mark 9:43–49: Hell is a place of punishment Luke 16:19–31: The parable of Lazarus and Dives depicts hell as a place of fiery torment 2 Thessalonians 1:9: Hell is a place of eternal ruin and separation from the Lord Revelation 14:11: Hell is a place of torment Revelation 20:10: Hell is a lake of burning sulfur where the wicked are tormented day and night forever

KT

I don't know how it's possible to make something this good and this dense and this long, and in such a relatively short amount of time! (Like I know it took you ages, but it really doesn't feel like that long since your last release.) Bravo!

Spice_weasel

I actually forgot for the first 90min that this was a movie about The VVitch and got really invested in the history of satanic witchcraft

Aradia Morningstar

I finally got to sit down and watch this. I'm so happy to be a supporter! The amount of work and attention to every detail is astounding. Bravo! More please!

Brenda Lee Mina Letender

I'm so sorry glad to be a member! So excited to see this deep deep dive! I watched everything you had on youtube so I'm ready for this..your brilliant my friend..love your content and very much appreciated the work you put into all your videos thank you, thank you❤️❤️😁

Rufus Evans

Brilliant work again. Really enriches enjoyment of the source material. Well done!

Astrea Ward

Not even kidding when I say that after watching your breakdown of Midsommar, I watched Hereditary and The VVITCH to watch THOSE breakdowns lol I LOVE all of the research into the history and folklore behind movies in general, so I'm definitely here for it :D ETA: Atun-Shei Films on YouTube made a movie called The Sudbury Devil. If anyone is game to watch more satanic-witch-related content, you'll probably love it. It's only available to stream on the Atun-Shei Films website, but it comes with a bunch of behind the scenes content too. Totally worth it.

Cassius Coutinho

I have never joined anyone’s Patreon until now. I am astonished at the level of detail in the movie and your tireless pursuit in surfacing it. Your video has been instrumental in inspiring me in researching deeper in my chosen topic for my little horror short story I am currently writing. Congratulations on a masterpiece of an in depth look. Eager to dive into your other works.

Liam McLaughlin

I *really* love your work and attention to detail/research Novum! I subscribed to your Patreon as soon as I got the YT bell notification in my inbox, chose to watch it here (while streaming the YT video on another tab to aid existential algorithm nightmare, I'm a socmed musician so I know how horrible this grind can be) Can I just add that I think this is your funniest "Complete Guide" video so far, you really took the heavy subject matter and quite naturally ladled in more humour than I'm used to from you that genuinely made me laugh, good job. We <3 u

Meghan Herrick

Sorry to insert myself here, I just wanted to say with other patrons I follow here, they do use a separate website to fix this issue, Vimeo I believe, and just switch the password to watch the video every month! Hopefully this helps! Otherwise, thank you so much for the constant quality content!

Valeriia Shvets

To be fair I also had some issues with the subscription, so maybe that's me

Novum

Oh god, that's four people now - Patreon really screwed me on that whole spreadsheet thing. I've added your name to the sticky post under the Youtube video!

Valeriia Shvets

❤️ that being said I didn't even think about it, but I think I'm also missing from the credits 😅

Novum

Given the circumstances it's really the least I could do, I don't want anyone feeling uncomfortable here! Plus it's not like you were telling me not to, I think that's where it gets weird. You were perfectly understanding even though you're in an impossible situation. I doubt I'd be capable of such restraint if I found myself in your situation. It's very admirable.

Valeriia Shvets

I also don't want it to be weird for you. But I do appreciate that!

Novum

Yeah, when I saw your name I had a feeling that might be the case. I'm so sorry that's happening to you, and your loved ones, and your people. While I can't conceive of the darkness you're currently enduring, I do know that any hatred or revulsion you feel is entirely valid and well earned. So let's say that philosophically, in general the world probably shouldn't entirely erase the history of Russia. But on this channel, from here on out we're just gonna say 'fuck all that noise' and not include anything Russian (unless it's necessary based on what we're looking at) while this terrible situation is ongoing. This is a learning process for me too and I don't want my work hurting anyone. I certainly don't want it to feel like a punch in the gut, so let's just miss it. Fuck Putin in his gimpy little mouth.

Valeriia Shvets

Sure, I understand where you're coming from. Just as a Ukrainian, anytime I see this representation, when it can be avoided, it just like a gut punch. But I understand it's maybe hard to put yourself in our shoes. It certainly doesn't take away from me fucking loving what you do. Just stings

Novum

Oh okay, I'm with you now. Actually I'm pretty sure I used most, if not all, of the 'spooky woods' paintings available in that wikimedia category. License-wise I can't just use any painting. But to the larger point of 'should we freeze out all Russian artwork, literature and music due to the current geopolitical situation', I get where you're coming from but I think that's treading dangerous ground historically speaking. I certainly wouldn't give any kind of financial support to any current Russian media. But at the same time I don't know if we should rob ourselves of Tolstoy because Vladmir Putin is a barbaric warmonger. And he most certainly is that, I can't say that strongly enough. A barbaric warmonger quite literally stealing the children from his opponent. I absolutely loathe him and I have not forgotten the terrible crimes that he, Wagner, Kadyrov and all the rest have committed. My heart bleeds for the Ukrainian people and I am disgusted by what continues to occur there. And not just in Ukraine, Russia's treatment of homosexuals, it's adoption of North Korean slave camps, the list goes on and on and I'm disgusted by all of it. It's certainly not been used as any kind of pro-Russian sentiment, really more just me not thinking and seeing a painting that I liked. But beyond that, as it pertains to art in general, I think if we do reject it en masse then it's just another beautiful thing destroyed or forgotten because of Putin's horrendous actions. And unfortunately, I don't think my country would be exempt from this same logic, nor America, probably not many countries. I really do appreciate you bringing it up though and it's something I'll keep in mind for the future.

Anna Elo

I appreciate you going the extra mile to make us patreons happy. very sweet of you! also I gotta say, I put my vote on another thumbnail in your earlier post, but the hare really was the way to go. it looks so striking when you come across it. makes me want a poster of that cursed little critter.

Valeriia Shvets

Not a reference, just a bit upset about you using work of a russian painter. Surely there are more paintings of the woods out there

Novum

Thanks so much Kevin, I'm really happy I was able to do it justice. Cheers for all the support dude!

Novum

Cheers Ryan!

Novum

Noooo Anna! That's three now, I'm adding your name to the pinned comment on the Youtube video with a special thank you. Really glad you're enjoying it anyway, I'm definitely trying to improve on the presentation with every video so I'm really happy to hear you say that. Sorry again about missing you from the credits, I presumed the Patreon spreadsheet would just be fine but oh well - another lesson learned!

Novum

Thanks so much Surina!

Novum

Shishkin? I don't think I get the reference!

Novum

Ah damnit that's a missed opportunity!

Novum

I'm keeping The Northman in mind, I did really enjoy the film, and I'm a lot better with Norse mythology post Midsommar video so I'll give it a rewatch and see how I feel. Definitely going to be doing one on Nosferatu! Really glad you're seeing improvement, I can certainly feel myself getting more confident as I go!

Novum

I think that was my initial takeaway too, I think Ralph Ineson was so intimidating on my initial watch that I was fairly sure it was only going one way. Thanks for the kind words dude, really glad you're enjoying it!

Novum

Thanks so much Siobhan!

Novum

I'm so sorry Kelly, that's happened with someone else too. I'm going to add your name to the sticky comment under the Youtube video. I copied a list of active members from Patreon but apparently it's missed people :( Really glad you enjoyed the video in spite of that, I'll go add your name now!

Kelly S. Moyes

Bummed I didn't see my name in the Patreon credits (unless I missed it) but that is not even the smallest of nitpicks for this incredible video. I hope Eggers sees it and re-appreciates his own work on the Witch, one of my favorite movies of all time. This guide was well worth the wait, and something I will re-watch all week! Fantastic work, Novum. All the best!

Siobhan Morris

I have also signed up partly for the uncensored versions, but partly just to support this excellent work.

Liz Grylls

Totally understand, thanks for replying! Like I said I really appreciate all the effort that goes into these. Amazing work.

Novum

Right?!

Novum

Hi Liz, glad to have you on board! So yeah, this is something I'd like to do, I'm aware the Patreon player has a limit I can upload before I have to start paying for it and it isn't the best viewing experience (subtitles etc). The issue is that if I do upload it privately on Youtube then anyone with the link can just pass it around and that means a) the Patreon becomes less valuable and b) the public youtube video is also at risk of not doing as well. So really the alternative is to set up a Youtube members page and also post the videos there but then (even though I'm posting them privately) they're at risk of getting me in trouble because of the amount of uncensored material in them. I think I can navigate a way through that, but I'm also looking at other hosting options too.

Liz Grylls

I've just joined to be able to watch the uncensored version. Your analysis of Midsommar and Hereditary were phenomenal. I would love if you could find a way to give us patrons an uncensored version natively in YouTube, annoyingly I can't find a way to cast this to my TV. Obviously it's a minor thing, really appreciate the many hours of work you must have put into this!

Caroline

Omg that is TOTALLY A DAMN FACE IN HIS SHIRT

Brandon Hunt

I haven’t seen this since the release and maybe I was a much less observant film watcher back then but I never really suspected Thomasin as being a witch before the final reveal. I saw her as more or less being pushed into that decision by the way she was treated by her family and her Puritanical society. On another note, the amount of time and research you put into these longform analyses is truly astounding. Keep up the fantastic work.

Natalie Zhao

Just rewatched the movie after seeing your guide and it really elevated the watching experience. Would be great if you also did The Northman 2022. Regardless, I'm really excited to see your progression from 2019 to now. Keep up the great work!

Daniel

Woulda been great if you included Rob Zombie’s Lords of Salem imagery

Valeriia Shvets

Using shishkins work tho ☹️

Anna Elo

I ended up staying up until 4am to finish it lmao.

Anna Elo

masterful work. I see your videos get longer and longer and hesitantly wonder if this is the one that will make me lose focus, but no. just as engaging as all your others, and even more polished to boot! (not that I've ever seen smth shoddy from you, but you keep getting better.) thank you so much for doing the research and teaching me so much about historical witchcraft. and thank you for releasing such a powerhouse of a video. I'll forgive you for leaving me out of the patreon credits ;)

Surina Slack

New patron and happy to be here! This video is masterful.

Ryan O

Brilliant!

Annie

Literally more content than the new Dune series, the first two hours could be a historical doc by itself Anyone else fall asleep watching last night and lose their place? 🙋🏼‍♀️

Kevin Eliassen

Just want to give you a round of applause for this project! I found you through your Hereditary video which blew me away with the level of detail and effort put into it. Seems you've outdone yourself again with this one..! The Witch is my favorite Eggers movie, and one of my favourites of all time, i'm having a field day watching this. Amazing stuff!!

Alexx T. Holden

You deserve all the praise for the insane amount of work you put into these but at the bare minimum because you always add a bunch of books to my to-read pile. 🤗

Robin hagen

This is amazing!! So well researched and beautifully edited!!!

Fourth Horseman

Thank you for taking the time to reply and adding my name out there. I appreciate your words. I thought it was odd, especially since my name is on the credits from 4 months back, on “Hereditary - What Happened Next?”. I had no idea how creators added member names to their videos. Interesting. Technology, sometimes it just fails. =)

Novum

Happy holidays to you too Meg!

Novum

Ahahah, I nearly cut that out so many times but I'm glad I didn't now!

Novum

That's honestly so great to hear dude, it's always terrifying waiting several hours to hear feedback on the vid and this really meant a lot to me, thank you!

Novum

I'm really disappointed with that dude, so so sorry about it. I have literally no idea why your name wasn't included. I downloaded a spreadsheet of 'active members' from Patreon and copied it in to a text box in Premiere. I just checked both and it seems your name didn't appear in either (despite you definitely being an active member). I should have been more diligent with it, unfortunately at the point where the editing project has seven hours of footage and a moving text box with several hundred names in, it just turns into a lag nightmare and I couldn't actually check it in motion during the edit, so I trusted Patreon to have done it right. That won't happen again. As for names appearing twice, I've done a lot of editing for a bigger Youtuber and this does happen, I think it might be when someone's billing expires/is cancelled and is reinstated in the same billing window, it's not a case of me typing it twice. *I can't edit the video now but I have added a special thank you to you as the top amendment in the Youtube pinned comment, where it will remain.* Your comment literally got me out of bed because this is really not okay on my part, I can certainly promise it won't happen again. If anyone else (that was a supporter prior to last Saturday) doesn't see their name in the credits please let me know and I'll add a written thank you to them too. Sorry again Fourth, really glad you enjoyed it despite my ineptitude!

Fourth Horseman

I've been a Patron since May, but I was left out of the credits. Oh well. I've been part of the journey anyways. The video is a masterpiece. I got to enjoy it, and that's what really matters. I was a bit disappointed for the exclusion, but at the end of the day, all I cared for, was that the video meet my expectations, and it actually exceeded them. It was worth waiting all these months. Fun fact, I also noticed that "JennyFab" on the other hand, got consecutive double billing. LOL.

Alexx T. Holden

Sir, you have done it again. As much as I love you're other Complete Guides, The Witch is one of my favorite films of all time and Eggers is my favorite new generation director. I've said this before, but you're critical analysis absolutely has a place in Literary Theory studies as a good example of how to apply those concepts.

Gen Hensley

Check out the Aprehension Engine Mark Korven designed for the soundtrack. I don’t think this movie would be the same without the sound design and this particular instrument is fascinating. As an aside- would love to see a guide to Heretic.

DB

This is a full business day long and I have never been more excited.

Rosemary Black

I can’t stop laughing at the phrasing of “nut gutters”

Megzie Sassypants

Thank you for this FEAST!! tonight we drink to Novum and Black Phillip!! Congrats on finishing another Complete Guide! I hope you can take a little time off to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Happy Holidays!