Vague Visages’ Her Will Be Done review contains minor spoilers. Julia Kowalski’s 2025 movie features Maria Wróbel, Roxane Mesquida and Wojciech Skibinski. Check out the VV home page for more film criticism, movie reviews and film essays.

Communal culture reaches a tipping point in Her Will Be Done. The 95-minute movie, directed by French filmmaker Julia Kowalski, contrasts with typical folk horror productions through its provocative character sketches and layered directorial execution. Charged by “devil within” energy and two marvelous lead performances, Her Will Be Done announces the arrival of another French auteur.

Her Will Be Done studies the psychological decline of a village outcast. Portrayed by newcomer Maria Wróbel, 20-year-old Nawojka (also known as “Naw”), works on her family’s farm after her mother’s death. She aspires to be a veterinarian but fails to identify a dark feeling consuming her soul, as the young woman suffers from sudden seizures and an overall feeling that she can’t control her body. And when a banished outsider/rebel returns to the community (Roxane Mesquida as Sandra), Naw’s life further spirals out of control as she experiences a sexual awakening while local men mark their territory in the worst possible ways.

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Simon Beaufils’ cinematography and Isabelle Manquillet’s editing amplify a feeling of looming dread in Her Will Be Done. Tight close-ups and quick zoom-ins help the audience understand the physical and mental state of both Naw and Sandra while at once establishing the figurative distance between them and their slow bonding process, evidenced in part by a wedding reception sequence in which the women let loose and have fun. And there’s a brilliantly executed sequence in which various guests react to Sandra’s arrival; a scene that will undoubtedly remind Martin Scorsese fans of the opening scene in The Departed (2006) as Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson) intimidates locals with his presence alone. Not quite a villain and not quite a traditional Manic Pixie Dream Girl, Sandra exudes the confidence of Harley Quinn but carries herself more like Sandrine Bonnaire’s Mona from the 1985 Agnès Varda classic Vagabond, albeit with significantly more sex appeal (i.e. topless under a black leather jacket).

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Her Will Be Done’s screenplay, written by Kowalski and Beaufils, leaves much to the imagination. The writers reveal little about Naw and Sandra’s backstories, which arguably benefits the overall viewing experience. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to understand what exactly consumes the main protagonist’s mind. Is it grief? Is it guilt? Or did she simply inherit a demon? The collective montages suggest that there’s a sense of duality to consider, given that Naw genuinely believes she is tapped into something bigger and that locals perceive Sandra as some type of witch. Since both women get objectified and appear nude in Her Will Be Done, Kowalski seems to imply that the village itself — full of misogynistic men and puritanical women — is in fact the demon.

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Wróbel integrates all of Kowalski’s main themes with her off-kilter and sexually charged lead performance. She commands the screen during every close-up, and also communicates her character’s unease as she quite literally strips away everything that’s meaningful to her. While Kowalski doesn’t fully explore a religious angle in Her Will Be Done, there’s enough spirituality to reinforce the idea that judgmental locals — both men and women — can essentially kill a community, or at least keep it locked into past traditions instead of evolving into the future.

Her Will Be Done released digitally on October 2, 2026 via Yellow Veil Pictures.

Q.V. Hough (@QVHough) is Vague Visages’ founding editor. Thank you for reading film criticism, movie reviews and film essays at Vague Visages.

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