Ben Shaw is a rebellious teenager who is sent to spend the summer with his father in a small Michigan lake town. His parents are heading toward divorce, and he works at his father's marina while trying to fit in with local teens. Ben soon suspects that the woman next door has been taken over by an ancient witch that hunts children. The movie mixes teen trouble, family stress, mystery, body horror, and dark fairy-tale scares.
Ben's conflict with his parents' divorce mirrors the witch's power to tear families apart. The witch hides inside mothers and makes adults forget their children, which turns family loss into the main horror. Ben and Mallory become the people who notice the danger and try to rescue the missing children. The movie focuses on broken trust, memory, teen trouble, family loyalty, and the fear of losing someone without anyone remembering.
Community feedback
Was our 0% Woke rating accurate?
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for The Wretched.
Woke representation / casting
Not present. The movie has a mixed cast in a present-day Michigan town, including Piper Curda as Mallory and Azie Tesfai as Sara. The story does not frame those choices as a diversity statement or build its group around identity.
0%
Woke political dialogue
Not present. The dialogue centers on divorce, teen conflict, work, missing children, and the witch. It has no modern identity, DEI, or activist lines.
0%
Identity-driven story themes
Not present. The story uses the witch to turn divorce, family loss, and forgotten children into horror. It does not make race, gender, sexuality, or current identity politics a story goal.
0%
Western institutional / cultural critique
Not present. The film shows a broken family and adults who fail to believe Ben, but it does not attack modern institutions, men, religion, capitalism, or traditional social rules. Its police and family problems serve the supernatural plot.
0%
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant. The movie is an original witch story inspired by folklore and does not change a known character, franchise, or historical figure.
0%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Not present. The supplied X pass reports no anti-woke reaction or named complaints. Other audience talk centers on scares, gore, teen drama, and plot holes.
0%
Creator track record context
Not present. The key creative team is publicly linked to independent horror, folklore, and practical effects. The title interviews focus on monster rules, family fear, and fun horror, not on activism or identity campaigns.
0%
Production
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