'Kandisha' Trailer: 'Inside' Directors Julien Maury And Alexandre Bustillo Bring Demonic Folklore Horror To Shudder
Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, the filmmakers behind the New French Extremity horror movie Inside, are headed to streaming service Shudder with Kandisha. Described as a tale of "demonic folklore horror," the story follows a young woman who summons up a vengeful demon to go after her abusive ex. She doesn't think the summoning will actually work – but it does. And now the demon is on a killing spree. We've all been there, right? Watch the Kandisha trailer below.
Kandisha Trailer
While I'm not a fan of all the films that are considered part of the "New French Extremity" classification, I absolutely love Inside. It's a brutal, bloody, upsetting movie, and something about it just clicks with me. Ever since seeing Inside many years ago, I've made sure to pay attention to the work of directors Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo. And while I don't think they've been able to match Inside just yet, I'm always interested in what they've cooked up.
Their latest is Kandisha, a movie inspired by the Morrocan folk legend of the vengeful female demon Aicha Kandicha. In the movie, "It's summer break and best friends Amélie, Bintou and Morjana hang together with other neighborhood teens. Nightly, they have fun sharing scary stories and urban legends. But when Amélie is assaulted by her ex, she remembers the story of Kandisha, a powerful and vengeful demon. Afraid and upset, Amélie summons her. The next day, her ex is found dead. The legend is true and now Kandisha is on a killing spree— and it's up to the three girls to break the curse."
Per the trailer, Kandisha demands the lives of six men when she comes calling, so fellas, watch out. Mathilde Lamusse, Samarcande Saadi, and Suzy Bemba star in the movie, which is headed to Shudder on July 22 in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, as well as via the Shudder offering within the AMC+ bundle where available.
This isn't the only new film Maury and Bustillo have on the way, either. They also have The Deep House, a film about an underwater haunted house that's headed for EPIX.
Aicha Kandicha
Ignorant American than I am, I had never heard of the legend of Aicha Kandicha until writing this story. So I did some deep, intense research – by which I mean I went to Wikipedia. They claim that the mythological figure is "typically depicted as a beautiful young woman who has the legs of a hoofed animal such as a goat or camel." They also add that Aicha Kandicha "is generally thought to live near water sources, and is said to use her beauty to seduce local men and then madden or kill them."
The roots of Aicha Kandicha can be traced back to the Phoenician colonies in North Africa. Over time, she was "folded into Islamic traditions while maintaining her licentious nature and association with aquatic environments." So guys, if you're strolling by a body of water and a beautiful hoofed woman shows up, you should probably run. Unless you're into that sort of thing. No judgment here.