A low budget indie horror movie that tries but just doesn't work. The staging in the supposed scary scenes seem so pedestrian. There is no tension or emotion. Give a pass on this one...
59 Reviews
Nice try though...
ezgolucky24 March 2021
Nothing special to see here...
paul_haakonsen2 October 2021
Sure, when I sat down to watch the 2020 movie "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" I wasn't harboring much of any expectations. Why? Well, I hadn't even heard about the movie, and the synopsis wasn't really selling the movie all that well. But still, it being a movie that I hadn't already seen, of course I found the time to sit down to watch it.
And let me just say that "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" was not a great movie. The movie was permeated by a strong feeling of it being a low budget movie through and through. But at least writer and director Philip J. Cook put in a wholehearted attempt at making a movie.
The storyline told in "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" was just a swing and a miss and rather generic. Actually it was bordering on being laughable. It was so difficult to take the storyline serious and get submerged into it. So this movie was something where you just end up paying half an eye of attention to the screen.
Visually then "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" was somewhat of a mixed bag of nuts. So of the effects were actually fair and the intention behind them spot on, but the execution and bringing them to the screen didn't always have great outcomes. I mean, for example the scene with the twister forming and things flying around, yet the trees in the background stood perfectly still without as much as even a leaf shaking.
The acting performances seen in "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" wasn't much to write home about. I am sure that the actors and actresses did their best, but they just had nothing solid or profound to work with, so it was coming ill off on the screen.
I am sure that there is an audience out there for a movie such as "Pungo: A Witch's Tale". I just happened not to be in that particular target audience. And this is definitely not a movie I would recommend you waste your time, money or effort on.
My rating of "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" lands on a generous three out of ten stars.
And let me just say that "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" was not a great movie. The movie was permeated by a strong feeling of it being a low budget movie through and through. But at least writer and director Philip J. Cook put in a wholehearted attempt at making a movie.
The storyline told in "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" was just a swing and a miss and rather generic. Actually it was bordering on being laughable. It was so difficult to take the storyline serious and get submerged into it. So this movie was something where you just end up paying half an eye of attention to the screen.
Visually then "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" was somewhat of a mixed bag of nuts. So of the effects were actually fair and the intention behind them spot on, but the execution and bringing them to the screen didn't always have great outcomes. I mean, for example the scene with the twister forming and things flying around, yet the trees in the background stood perfectly still without as much as even a leaf shaking.
The acting performances seen in "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" wasn't much to write home about. I am sure that the actors and actresses did their best, but they just had nothing solid or profound to work with, so it was coming ill off on the screen.
I am sure that there is an audience out there for a movie such as "Pungo: A Witch's Tale". I just happened not to be in that particular target audience. And this is definitely not a movie I would recommend you waste your time, money or effort on.
My rating of "Pungo: A Witch's Tale" lands on a generous three out of ten stars.
Imaginative indie supernatural film
smxp12 May 2021
Ok, I survived the movie
bigmeanogre24 March 2021
Gawful
takato05243 May 2021
As in God awful. Sadly I live in the area they are supposedly in. Was clearly not filmed on location. The acting of the little guy (he's gotta be 5'5") was so awful I thought I was watching a commercial. Looked him up on imdb and have never heard of anything he's ever been in. Bud also had an unremarkable role, and Grace...Well none of these people should act. The constant use of cgi was also weird. You really notice it when the little guy is cutting tree branches, or you look at a phone screen. How this has so many high reviews I don't understand.
Last thing: why is the black girl, the only black person in this movie, not credited on imdb?
Last thing: why is the black girl, the only black person in this movie, not credited on imdb?
Future So-Bad-It's-Good Staple
bleedingvigilantes6 April 2021
This movie is incredible. The plot is impossible guess, two out of the three main leads are never sure what facial expression they should be making, CGI that would've looked cheap in 2004, and to top it all off with they thought "Pungo" was a scary title. It's a perfect pick for a bad movie night with your friends. I cannot recommend it enough.
Unspeakably bad
ranwulfs14 June 2021
I really enjoyed reading through the reviews on IMDb for this stinker. Many times film crews and production companies are accused of larding the reviews to skew the ratings average. This time I feel certain that's the case. From bad production, to bad acting, to absolutely appalling costume/wardrobe (seriously though: wardrobe by Party City?) this amateurish waste of time looks like a high school drama club mated with a particularly impecunious group of LARPers. The title got my interest, because I'm from the Virginia Beach area. I think Grace Sherwood deserves better treatment than this tripe. I hope she'll rise from her grave and haunt these filmmakers for befouling her name with this sophomoric attempt. Hard pass.
"This house is not good"
rotini-5258626 March 2021
Grace Sherwood was my grandmother!
fvhkrp15 March 2022
NO KIDDING! Proved it in my Ancestor research. She was the Great Grandmother of my great Grand Uncle George Sims. They were both from the UK but took very different routes to come to the colonies. She came by way of her father and mother who were Mayflower descendants. George Simms went from England to Antigua, with his father and then sailed on to Virginia after his father's death. They met and married in 1867 prior to her witch trials.
Ugh!!!
ericw-9059225 March 2021
Enjoyable Indie Witch Film
JGReviews15 April 2021
Pungo: A Witch's Tale is a fun indie sci-fi/horror flick. There's really a lot going on here both in terms of plot and visuals. For an independent film, the visual elements are remarkable -- specifically the effects and locations. The story concerns two men trying to rescue a woman from a witch in another world, which is more than enough of a jumping off point for a fun horror film. Sure, some of the actors are better than others here and there's some of the inevitable imperfections of an indie production, but Pungo comes off as one of those horror movies that was really fun to make and I personally really enjoy watching those. Sometimes it's the most audacious moments that are the most fun to watch. It's a film that will give you some wows, laughs, and some surprises. Enjoy!
So bad it's awesome
mburt-1143813 June 2021
This is like the room as a horror movie, and deserves a cult following. Anyone who rated this movie as actually being good was so high when they watched it. If you want a good laugh definitely watch it. My favourite was the Spanish conquistadors helmet in 1700s Virginia for props. The weird ass CGI is so funny. Frankly if I was in a horror scenario I'd like it to be this because I'd die laughing.
Worse than horrible!
jalon-6999328 May 2021
I have seen some really bad, low budget films, but this is horrendous! Props could be made by a 1st grader, but most were probably bought from Oriental Trading. The set/props are supposed to be from the early 1700's, but I'm pretty sure Walmart wasn't in existence then. It's sadly, laughable. The three main actors, were ok, but the rest of the "cast" probably acted in an elementary school play, and that was it for their experience. It was a complete waste of time. I lost 100 minutes of my life, and it wasn't even worth it.
Dont waste your time
svhstives26 June 2021
Give it a hard pass
xtiaan-242-7238248 February 2022
High school production level performances, effects by circa 1999 home edition adobe after effects. Terrible writing, every word is stilted.
Sometimes you just have to wonder why a film gets made. Im all for indie and auteur cinema, but this is not it. These people should just drink on weekends like normal people, not make "films". Perhaps they drink whilst making films, that would explain how bad this all is.
Sometimes you just have to wonder why a film gets made. Im all for indie and auteur cinema, but this is not it. These people should just drink on weekends like normal people, not make "films". Perhaps they drink whilst making films, that would explain how bad this all is.
Extremely LOW budget High School produced movie
roxmewild29 January 2023
Oh Dear where to start? Well from the start it is very apparent that this is an extremely low budget offering All the Actors and Actresses come across as being very amateur maybe this one of most first starring roles or maybe they are just crap at acting either way it didn't bode well as the story sucked as much as the acting did it was given the genre of fantasy am guessing that is due to it not being very scary as in horror and not being funny enough to cover comedy so fantasy can cover many sins . The fantasy of this particular movie is the thought the writer producer and director thought it was good enough to release and attach their name to it! Well as a D rated first time for all involved movie a learning curve that could have ended up worse!
Solid Story. Fun Ride
jeff-85-12656130 May 2021
Rife with continuity errors.
bethanybarnes-9770813 April 2022
The sound quality in this movie changes fairly regularly, there's continuity errors scattered throughout, the special effects are reminiscent of movies from 20 years ago. It's a truely low budget film. The one thing I can say it has going for it is the main actors.
Fun, quirky Wizard Oz meets Tremors
lucy_kriemhild24 March 2021
Low budget but clever with a brisk pace and unique story. Frankly, it's fun. It reminded me of a cross between Tremors with the two handymen and Wizard of Oz where they travel to another world to confront the menace. I enjoyed it as a quirky, dark fantasy.
his movie is NUTS!
lorrisaj27 April 2021
OK, here's the deal. This movie falls right into the horror genre, but it also has a LOT of sub genres, which might make Pungo - A Witch's Tale completely un-categorizable. Indie creators make films that conventional big studios would never touch, and that is often a good thing for lovers of the horror genre. And the mash-up of storylines is so incredibly over-the-top, that it deserves genuine attention. The plot takes some standard character tropes: The stoic leading man and his loopy sidekick, who meet a single woman who needs help and is dealing with something supernatural. But then, the writing takes over and OMG does this movie speed into directions that can only be described as insane. Without giving too much away, there are a couple good jump scares, and the CGI...wow. It's cheesy and cool in the best possible way. I sat through the final third of the film slack-jawed, not believing where this movie went. All I can say is that it incorporates all of the stuff we love about the B horror movies we loved as a kid, and adds a modern twist (or twelve) to the proceedings. This is either a bad/good movie, or a good/bad movie, (you decide) but either way, Pungo - A Witch's Tale should be - NEEDS to be - experienced, and I truly mean that - by every person who loved "Army of Darkness", "Drag Me to Hell", and all of those horror flicks that are part of fandom's lexicon. There was even a part where I thought the actors would exclaim, "Your Mother Was A Hamster, And Your Father Smelt Of Elderberries!" I had a lot of fun watching this off-the-wall film!
From a truly grating opening scene to meh
tarchon30 April 2023
The movie starts out with a witch trial scene set in Virginia in 1706. The writer apparently has no idea how witch trials worked, where Virginia is, what it would have been like in 1706, or how 18th century English language worked. That was 5 minutes of uninspired annoyance. I mean, if you go through the trouble of making a movie and decide to write dialog with all these "thees" and "thous" (which were already obsolete at the time anyway), wouldn't you take like 5 minutes to read wikipedia and see what they mean? This writer did not. We return to the 18th century later in the film to learn that the writer believes "windeth" was the plural of wind. (Also "you are her way backeth.") Beyond that, it's a vanilla vengeful witch flick that you've seen before, again and again, but with really bad writing. I just don't get the appeal of this witch thing, but I guess horror wouldn't be a genre if they didn't keep repeating the same 4 or 5 stories over and over again. A couple of the actors make a sincere effort. You have to admire that level of professionalism it takes to try to run with this dialog, but nobody could have made this script work. My suggestion: don't stick around until they start blathering nonsense about Einstein and black holes. Those wikipedia articles were not read either.
very entertaining
mich1elle7 April 2021
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