The Northern Irish folk horror film MANDRAKE – written by Matt Harvey – has been acquired by Shudder for streaming in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and North America.

The film debuted at FrightFest Glasgow in March and follows a probation officer attempting to return notorious murderer ‘Bloody’ Mary Laidlaw to society after twenty years in jail – but her faith and resolve are tested when children go missing, and accusations of witchcraft begin to stir.

MANDRAKE was directed by debutant Lynne Davison for Village Films, and backed by Northern Ireland Screen’s New Talent Focus program. It will exclusively stream on the leading genre streaming service.

Praise for MANDRAKE:

‘This casts a particularly creepy spell… A few shock moments jar the nerves, but it’s the atmosphere of damp, earthy dread that’ll stick with you.’ – Kim Newman

‘The film doesn’t leave much room for hope, but it does present viewers with a shifting moral landscape in which motivations are tricky to pin down. There is witchcraft involved here, alright, but it’s not a simple matter of good versus evil – it’s much more uncomfortable than that.’ – Jennie Kermode, Eye for Film

‘Matt Harvey’s screenplay is loaded with tensions and shocking surprises, and Davison wrings every possible bit of suspense from it, giving the film a brooding, dread-filled atmosphere… Unrelentingly bleak and absolutely mesmerizing, Mandrake gets my highest recommendations.’ – Joseph Perry, The Scariest Things

About Matt Harvey

Matt is a feature film and television writer specializing in thrillers and factual dramas. His credits include the award-winning AN ACT OF DEFIANCE, which tells the true story of the ANC Rivonia trial in Apartheid South Africa. Matt is represented by Conrad Williams.

MANDRAKE, the new feature film by Matt Harvey, is set to be screened at 7 pm tomorrow at the Belfast Film Festival. This is the latest feature film backed by Northern Ireland Screen through its New Talent Focus scheme, produced by Village Films and directed by Lynne Davison.

Witchcraft isn’t real and there’s some good in everyone; two things that Cathy Madden thought were true…until she met Mary Laidlaw.

Probation officer Cathy Madden (Deirdre Mullins), is given the task of rehabilitating notorious killer ‘Bloody Mary’ Laidlaw (Derbhle Crotty) back into society after thirty years of jail for murdering her abusive husband. Cathy has always believed that every client deserves a shot at redemption, but her beliefs are firmly tested when two children disappear near Mary’s farm. A figure of local legend and the subject of occult rumours, Mary Laidlaw’s name has long been invoked to terrify the local children - and when two go missing not long after her release, the village’s suspicions fall on Mary, whose renewed presence in the community seems to be awakening a violent rage among its people.

Cathy - skeptical of the villager's superstitions and with no belief in the occult – tunes out of the local gossip about Mary’s dark history and rumours of witchcraft in the woods. She sets out to find the missing children and prove her new client’s innocence, but soon becomes part of a magic ritual and learns more than she ever thought she would about Mary, about the people of her village - and about herself.

Blending elements of the ‘haunted house’ and ‘backwoods’ sub-genres, MANDRAKE is a contemporary folk tale that starts as a mystery and escalates into full-on survival horror. The story places the supernatural in a plausible setting and maintains a line that this could all be real. The story taps into the mythology of the Mandrake plant which was fabled to grow beneath the gallows and was the most precious plant known to the dark magic of childbirth and fertility. It’s a film about motherhood and community and broken family bonds. Ultimately it’s the story of two women on a collision course.

Previous to MANDRAKE, Matt’s work includes the 2017 film AN ACT OF DEFIANCE about the trial of Nelson Mandela and nine others accused of sabotage against the government during the apartheid era in South Africa. The film won five awards including the Golden Calf for Best Feature Film.

Matt’s three-part TV thriller CRACKED SCREEN, co-written with Hamish Wright, is in development with the BBC.

The film festival runs until 13th November. Read more and access tickets to MANDRAKE on the Belfast Film Festival website.

Matt Harvey is represented by Conrad Williams in the media department.