George A. Romero’s Season of the Witch is a slow-burn feminist occult drama

You can now stream a rediscovered feminist horror film from the director of Night of the Living Dead.

George A. Romero's 1973 film, originally titled "Hungry Wives," was intended as an exploitation flick and marketed as softcore porn but failed commercially. It has since been restored and re-released as "Season of the Witch" with an expanded runtime of 104 minutes from an original 89-minute cut, due to the discovery of lost footage from Romero's original 130-minute version. The film, made on a low budget of $100,000, is now recognized not as a sexploitation film, but as a feminist drama exploring a protagonist's escape from an abusive marriage through witchcraft. Despite its low production value and uneven acting, the film is noted for Romero's directing and its progressive themes for the era, creating a tense and atmospheric experience. It is currently available on Mubi and Kanopy.

The re-release of "Season of the Witch" highlights a growing trend of studios and streaming services revisiting and restoring overlooked or recontextualized films, particularly those with progressive or niche themes that may have been commercially unsuccessful in their original release. This indicates a market for genre films that offer more than just conventional scares, appealing to audiences interested in social commentary embedded within horror or exploitation narratives. The success of such restorations could encourage further unearthing of similar cinematic artifacts, expanding the available catalog for critically engaged viewers and scholars.

This event signals a broadening definition of what constitutes valuable horror cinema, moving beyond purely commercial or shock-value metrics to embrace artistic intent and thematic depth. The film's focus on feminist issues and occultism within Romero's distinctive directorial style provides a valuable case study for understanding the evolution of genre filmmaking and its capacity to address societal concerns. The availability of this restored version on platforms like Mubi and Kanopy suggests a sustained audience appetite for arthouse and critically recognized genre content, influencing future curation and distribution strategies.