Have you ever wondered what a Black version of Misery (the 1990 classic starring James Caan and Kathy Bates) would be like? Well...enter Spell, directed by Mark Tonderai (House at the End of the Street).
The film’s synopsis via the press release sent to The Root:
While flying to his father’s funeral in rural Appalachia, an intense storm causes Marquis (Omari Hardwick) to lose control of the plane carrying him and his family. He awakens wounded, alone and trapped in Ms. Eloise’s (Loretta Devine) attic, who claims she can nurse him back to health with the Boogity, a Hoodoo figure she has made from his blood and skin. Unable to call for help, Marquis desperately tries to outwit and break free from her dark magic and save his family from a sinister ritual before the rise of the blood moon.
In an exclusive clip sent to The Root, Marquis wakes up to unfamiliar surroundings with Ms. Eloise hovering above him.
“You been rode hard and put up wet,” Ms. Eloise says to Marquis, using the familiar southern colloquialism. Devine typically portrays “somebody’s mama,” but this time it looks like she’s portraying “somebody’s misery.” Plus, in the above clip, she has that creepy calm vibe going on where you automatically know she can’t really be trusted. Sure, she embodies those saccharine maternal vibes when we first see her, but you know damn well something fishy is going on and her motives aren’t pure.
Ms. Eloise definitely seems to have some mysterious similarities to Bates’ Oscar-winning Annie Wilkes, but in Spell, there’s voodoo involved. I’m just sitting here hoping there’s nothing in here as cringey as the hobbling scene from Misery—I don’t know if I can take it!
Spell will be available on Premium On-Demand and for Digital Purchase on Oct. 30.