Digging into Enys Men - Understanding Mark Jenkin’s Cornish Folk Horror

A look at Mark Jenkin's 2022 Cornish Folk Horror Enys Men.
I don’t think anyone can truly explain Enys Men, or if it’s truly even meant to be explained, but this is the video where I have a crack at explaining Enys men.

[@Murderbits]

It's hard to spoil the film by talking about the plot, since there isn't one.

[@comradetaco3003]

42 years of age and self isolating for medical reasons while also dealing with the stone drum beat of aging and impending death. The beginning character study hit close to home.

[@profoundunderdog]

I’ve been thinking about what to say here. “Take care of yourself” doesn’t seem enough. But do. Please do. Is there a film or something else you’d like me to make a video on? I do requests for people self isolating for medical reasons, as of today.

[@comradetaco3003]

@profoundunderdog I appreciate the effort and sentiment. Just the plight of the overly reflective in a time of illness. Keep up the great work, always looking forward to your next work.

[@comradetaco3003]

I thought a lot on a request. I spend considerable time on Modern Conflict Theory which I've been rounding out with Foucault's work. You're ideas and approaches, as well as others like Nerdwriter and schnee, always bring new perspectives to well worn paths. Because of your unique or new ideas, I must abstain from any recommendations. Thank you for your kindness, it means a lot.

[@profoundunderdog]

On the one hand, I’m slightly relieved as I was worried you might ask for the new Transformers movie or something. On the other, the offer stands. If there is a film or tv show you think I should cover and I haven’t, let me know, and I’ll see what I can do. And thank you so much for the kind words. It really is much appreciated. Cheers comrade.

[@comradetaco3003]

@profoundunderdog lol absolutely not. Worst worst case scenario would be a study on the disappearance of movies like Troll 2. But, and i plead, don't do that. Thanks again! 🤖💥🚚

[@weeef666]

To me this film is about grief and how to find peace and conquer it. In folklore, ghosts are meant to exist because the had some unfinished business they had in the real world. I believe the "Volunteer" to be a ghost who was sent back in time to help past her find her husband and his missing rescue boat. In the film, it is mentioned that all the crew and the rescue boat went missing. I think the people on the island who appear to the "Volunteer" to be people lost at sea and was never found, who died and was brought to Stone Island. This could explain why the "Volunteer" could hear her own radio messages and also why she's in 1973 even though her husband died on that same day, 50 years ago from when the "Volunteer" died. This also explains her writing "No change" in the "Date" column at the end of the film, because she knows her time on the island has finally ended. In terms of the flower and the Stone, I believe that they are omens for the "Volunteer", if she does not help past her find her husband before the flowers rot with lichen and the stone approaches, she cannot enter the afterworld. That is also why at the end of the film, when she supposedly turns into the Stone, the music is positive, because she can finally find peace for herself and her dead husband. She no longer needs to live on this deserted island, full of dread and the mourning of others lost at sea. However, I am still quite lost on what the Seven Maids represent and why the appear on the tin can in the "Volunteer"'s house. Could you understand that part? Thanks.

[@profoundunderdog]

That’s a really good interpretation of the film. I like it a lot. It gives the film more of a clear narrative than my reading, which is more about the metaphorical subtext, and it’s entirely possible it’s closer to what Jenkin intended. In answer to your question, the closest I can see would be that the maids are bal maidens, who typically worked the surface of tin mines in Cornwall. Perhaps, they represent the wives who lost husbands to mining tragedies (like the Levant mine disaster), just as the volunteer lost her husband at sea? And the Seven Maids dry milk is a metaphorical mirror between them and the volunteer? Just as dry milk lasts pretty much forever, so does their grief? Whether it’s that or not, thank you for watching the video and thank you for sharing your excellent theory.

[@weeef666]

​@@profoundunderdogThat's a very plausible explanation for the Seven Maids. I think they might act as a warning to the "Volunteer" that time is almost up, as they only appear at the end of the film when the growth of the lichen on the flowers/the "Volunteer" is at its maximum. Very unfortunate the DVD doesn't contain any director commentary or interview though.

[@thecinematicmind]

The isolation in this film and the main character over the course of the film manifesting the history of the Stone Island, her profession and her past it somehow got more psychological.

[@williambulmer6389]

In the 19th century Cornwall was an industrial county - leading the world in mining technology, geology, metallurgy, steam power etc. All gone. I notice how much the isolated rock looks like the ruins of an old pump house at the top of a tin mine. You can still see those 'islands of rock' standing as memorials to Cornwall's industrial past.

[@lamarscrotum1236]

This is the type of film that humbles me, in the sense that it makes me realize how dumb I am lmao the whole damn time I was like “what the fuck is going on?!” I’m not smart enough to figure this shit out on my own 😂

[@profoundunderdog]

I’m sure that’s not true, my friend! But, if I helped in any way add to the enjoyment of this film, that’s really lovely to hear!

[@InsideOutBeats]

I was looking for ‘obscure’ horror for my next project remix. Was recommended this and found it very different in a good way. Loved the old grainy camera used to shoot. Nicely picked apart, I enjoyed this!

[@alm5966]

I've yet to see this film but as kid of the 70's I grew up on the TV series that inspired this. Children of The Stones was a particular favourite but it was The Changes that seriously disturbed me as a young lad. That really f***ed me up.

[@johnpeterson7936]

Pretty sure it’s just an isolated daughter and father. The father would leave and get supplies. She saw his body being pulled from the waters as a child. She tried to kill herself. She was saved but wanted a redo, hence the child version and flower which she nurses and eventually destroys. I agree it’s a person stuck in their own mind, but I think it’s based off the idea of having the only person you truly love die. She wants to break free, hence the scene where she sees the coast not to far off, People trying to reach her. But she can’t escape the prison she put up after her fathers death. It was already comfortable there. I think the mine shaft is her brain, and she drops stones to make sure she is sane. As she falls deeper into her delusion she starts dropping stones in weird ways, sometimes multiples. I think the giant one she decides to not drop is her deciding not to kill herself again. She loses all emotions when she becomes the stone. It was always her fear and her comfort. True blankness. Just existing. With life all around you(the lichen). I think she was in an insane asylum, in the actual world. Maybe held by a straight jacket(the red coat). This is how she viewed the experience.

[@profoundunderdog]

I’m not saying you’re wrong, it’s a film experience that is very much about evoking feelings that stem from personal experience and largely exists at that intersection; but I think I can recall that there was definitely a s*xual scene in there, that maybe leads me away from what you suggest here. It has been a while since I watched it at this point, however. I really like the idea of the stone being dropped down the well as a test of her sanity though. Does it hit the bottom? Is there still a tangible “something” there? And what does it say when it isn’t? Just checking every day. That’s a really interesting read of that. I also agree that her experience on the island isn’t necessarily literal; functionally it is, it’s what the story is about such as it is, but i think Jenkin used it as much for conveying her mindstate. I really do love reading these takes, and a lot of them really make me think about this film, and what I missed, like yours does here. Thank you so much for sharing.

[@sliceofcristian]

Thanks for the take, I got the character study part as it hits close to home, but as a foreigner, the Cornwall parallels were lost to me

[@azulero73]

Love this interpretation. Thank you. Aesthetically it’s so all-consuming, a dream, ambient field recordings - all the saturation, the taps, crackles, footfall crunches, prolonged silence. Something special.

[@diedraaschenbeck8876]

Great explanation.

[@kathleensloan7201]

What this film evoked for me more than anything else was paganism & the ancient cultures of pagans. I saw the rock, particularly in conjunction with the picture on the wall, as representing a goddess & a matriarchal culture; the 7 women in the 19th century clothing reinforced this. It was very reminiscent of the film "The Wicker Man" - pagans living on an isolated island like the woman in "Enys Men." I saw the young woman as either herself when she was young or as a daughter who died. I did not see the man who brought her supplies as a dead husband at all. In the video analysis, I'm amazed that he didn't even mention the lichen that started growing on her skin, mirroring that growing on the flowers. I perceived that as this nature "claiming" her. An interesting surreal, supernatural film.

[@profoundunderdog]

Firstly, thank you so much for watching and for your feedback. Lots of interesting stuff here, but I’ll just feedback on two things. The women were bal maidens, women who worked the surface of mines in Cornwall. Like the fishermen and tin miners I think they represent the lost industries of Cornwall. I cut a lot of stuff specifically about the decline of the industries of the region, I went a lot deeper on that in my original script and I just ended up thinking it wasn’t necessary for this video in the edit. Re: the lichen. For me, the flower was a reflection of the volunteer, and the lichen reflecting the scars, and then the scars reflecting the lichen, was hammering that theme home, which I didn’t feel the need to get into particularly. But, of course, I’m not offering the definitive interpretation of this film, just my thoughts, and it’s been really cool getting comments from people who see the film completely differently, and I can’t say they are wrong, they aren’t, they are just different perspectives, and that’s the beauty of a film like this, that invites you to engage with it.

[@SCATally]

Thanks so much for this astute analysis! You made great points here, so may things I had not thought of. For any one else interested in this film, there is also a "Making of" video on youtube where Jenkins talks about the reason he used the camera and lens he used, and how that acted almost like another character in the film. That was also helpful.

[@DrJayFreeman]

Excellent analysis of a truly unique film. Thanks so much for your insight.

[@brandonhamaguchi]

I find some similarities on tone and message with the more traditional narrative driven 3 Woman by Robert Altman (from the 70s)

[@profoundunderdog]

Gosh, that’s a film I haven’t watched in an eternity. Worth a revisit for sure. I love Altman.

[@BoldeBarde]

I was so confused watching it I really liked this view of it. I was so surprised when he took the coat she grabbed from the water lol I was like “excuse me that’s hers??” Even tho red was clearly her denoted color

[@profoundunderdog]

The coat colours is such a great spot from you, and a really nice touch by Jenkin.

[@quark6766]

This is oe of those films that stays with you and makes you think and like all great films, demands repeated viewings.

[@mixlennoxx6144]

Thank you. I enjoyed it. Tonight we’re watching your channel . 🙌🏻

[@profoundunderdog]

I’m really glad you enjoyed it, and thank you so much for checking out my channel.

[@davidgaughran5450]

I'm Irish, I love Cornwall. I thought it was beautiful when I was there, but i knew something was wrong because of the poverty I saw. But I think it's the most beautiful place I've been to. I thought the film was a love letter to Cornwall, i know that the activists responsible for the book "A blueprint for survival " set up hq in Cornwell because they believed that size, as in size of cities was the problem. I think the film was a warning, I think those flowers on the cliff edge represented life, or maybe intelligent life, and such a tiny change in conditions, that our volunteer was recording, wiped them out. It's been a while since I saw it, but i thought the sign meant OVEN as in we're going roast soon because of climate change, and I thought it also meant COVEN, in that we've got a group of witches in control of our destiny, and it isn't good. And because we're all stuck in our stoic lives, we're ignoring this. I think the film was a warning.

[@profoundunderdog]

This is a fine reading of the film, and I think it’s great that we can watch something like this and take different things from it. In terms of it being a love letter to Cornwall, I agree, and I feel it’s weakness of this video (in hindsight) that I really only said it at the end, and it’s not incredibly clear that’s what I’m saying: I think it is something that will stand forever as remembering Cornwall, as it is, and as it was. The industry, the culture and the landscape. In many ways, as well as the other things it is, it is Mark Jenkin’s standing stone, in memory of Cornwall. And I’ve said it much better there than I did in the last couple of paragraphs of the video. Oh well. Lol.

[@davidgaughran5450]

@@profoundunderdog sorry I was very rude and didn't complement your film. I really enjoyed watching your film, it stimulated me. So keep making them! I just wanted to give my take to someone who would appreciate it. I don't even think our takes are in opposition. I think what i said is part of this individuals consciousness, because that's why she's there, she's the activist and they've sent her to survey this island. I think it's meant to be psychedelic, like were completely meant to see different levels.

[@profoundunderdog]

Please, you weren’t rude at all and thank you so much for watching and sharing your view of the film!

[@brandonhamaguchi]

Thank you for this analysis, it make me think with other angle the movie and found more

[@profoundunderdog]

An absolute pleasure, and I’m glad you enjoyed the video!

[@donmiller2705]

You should definitely have more views and subscribers

[@profoundunderdog]

Thankyou so much.

[@michaelcarlin9153]

Excellent review. Really enjoyed that.

[@profoundunderdog]

Thank you very much!

[@ronmccy8910]

An excellent review and film analysts - but what are we to make of so many groups of seven (7) seen throughout?

[@profoundunderdog]

I think another commenter mentioned this, so I can’t take any credit, but one of the (many, many) things 7 symbolises is communion with spirits. Which fits the movie very nicely. It also has a great many uses across multiple religions, but I am far from any kind of expert on that.

[@wendyspedale7687]

Did you find anything significant about "A Blueprint for Survival?" That was a big thing back in the early 70s. The book seemed to have been featured in many scenes.

[@profoundunderdog]

Mark Jenkin himself dealt with that in an interview. Basically, he said he was looking for a book that fit his themes, stumbled on this one, and loved its look. From an interview with Sense of Cinema: SOC: “I haven’t read the book so I haven’t quite got that reference, but I understand it’s about living in small, deindustrialised communities for your moral and environmental health, and business and social cohesion…” Jenkin: “No, I’d never heard of it, and I needed a prop book… ….And then, I just thought, I’m going to look up what was published in 1973 or 1972 and that book came up, and I thought, that’s really interesting, and I got hold of a copy of it, and it’s really superficial, but I just loved the cover of it. First off, that’s a really bold bit of design, that will look great, which is a lot of my starting point when I’m thinking about the film. Then it just was interesting because it’s basically a collection of papers. So, you’re right, there is that thematically, that runs all the way through it. It’s all different points of view, but all coalescing around this idea that basically we’ve got to pay attention to what we’re doing, the way we’re living and the impact that has on the environment, and the idea of bringing in the word ‘survival’, which is quite an alarming word to bring in. It’s not about making our life better or being more responsible so that our standard of life is maintained, it’s actually maintaining that if we’re going to survive on this lump of rock that’s falling through a vacuum, we need to have a plan.” www.sensesofcinema.com/2023/interviews/enys-men-an-interview-with-mark-jenkin/

[@diedraaschenbeck8876]

I loved it. Fantastic interpretation.

[@profoundunderdog]

Thank you!

[@il_nostro_della_segreto]

Thanks for the great video. Just watched Enys Men. Could you please put the names of the films/shows starting from 10:23? Is it all Children of the Stones and The Owl Service mentioned before? Thanks again.

[@profoundunderdog]

Hi there, thanks for watching and for the nice feedback. Obviously there is The Owl Service and Children of the Stones, and the majority of clips are from those two series, but I also included clips from Penda’s Fen (1974 and on Britbox), Raven (1977, which was on KZbin, but appears to have been taken down, so the only way to watch that now that I can see is the DVD), The Wicker Man (1973), Requiem for a Village (1975, on BFI Player), and Robin Redbreast (1970, on Tubi and Prime Video).

[@Clg09]

This is a wonderful interpretation, but I think the inner life is less important than the life of the island/past itself. She is the vehicle to feel and display the past rather than being the focal point.

[@profoundunderdog]

The idea of her being a vessel for memories of the dead is a lovely one, and ties into her being a physical representation of the standing stone. I really like that interpretation. This is why I love doing this, not just getting to express my thoughts, but getting to hear the thoughts and interpretations of others. Thank you.

[@BlackKara]

Yeah, I want you to make a video on "Jesus shows you the way to the highway". Some people hate it, I think its worth going over with a finer comb. Can't wait to keep watching your videos, regaurdless of topic.

[@profoundunderdog]

Uploads that concern film or tv are paused right now in solidarity with the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. I don’t want to promote any tv or film while the strike is ongoing. My plan is to finish the stuff I’m working on, then see if I can cover something else until that situation is resolved, if that is necessary. I haven’t seen that film but it looks great, and thank you so much suggesting it. I love finding new movies and that one looks a blast. I’ll add it to the list and I’ll see it if I can do a video on it too! Thank you so much for subbing and I’ll hopefully be able to get more content out soon, and hopefully you’ll enjoy that too!

[@YoBoyGio]

Not worth the watch but I could see people analyze this movie for 10+ years. Could be a good college essay of people trying to dig deeper about the mind of human.

[@niteowl9491]

A lovely analysis, great vid! I had some of the same takeaways, but (being from the US) didn't have the full Cornish history context. I do think that grief is the central theme, and manifests in a lot of different ways. The focal point of the Volunteer's personal grief, for her husband, for a past life, develops further as she become a witness not just to her own tragedy but to the other tragedies of the island. The miners that died, a forgotten culture. The church priest and the maids. The crew of the ship that perished saving the supply boat (I actually interpreted this bit as she and her husband were on that supply boat, she survived and her husband did not -- his boat is clearly the Govenek when he arrives, matching the destroyed sign she finds; also apparently "govenek" means "hope", which I just found out. Neat!). And finally, crucially, the environment itself, the crumbling away of the island which seems to somehow grow further and further away from reality. These are also all tied together by the number 7 -- there are 7 flowers, 7 miners, 7 crewmen and even 7 maids/nuns and 7 laughing children (as well as 7 flowers and 7 skulls in the black and white art piece). The inclusion of "Blueprint for Survival" feels like a two-way warning; a small community may thrive with industry and culture, but the lone human perishes, becomes stuck. The Volunteer is "self-sufficient" only as long as the supply boat keeps coming -- she cannot help but need people to survive, and I think she resents that. As you mentioned, it seems she cannot see anyone but her husband when she's forced to interact with someone else. And then there's the lichens... :P The fact that they begin to grow from her scar was very interesting to me, alongside the, hm, intentional fall from the roof as a teen. Lichen typically are the first thing to grow on freshly exposed surfaces after a disaster-level purge of life. Perhaps she feels she has always been dead from that moment, and only felt alive and happy with her partner. By the end, a flower seemingly springs forth just for her, her own grave marker. No longer a guardian or witness, the permanent stone, but rather a more subtle and integral piece of the island. The priest seems to carry her as a baby (particularly telling that he is also her literal father), ushering her into a new life in death among her fellow fallen. Aw jeez and then the children are a thing... tl;dr this movie is dense af and very good, and this video is also very good Uh thanks for reading! 😅 Looking froward to more of your content.

[@profoundunderdog]

This is a really great post, and lots of things that I missed, particularly the name of the boat, “Govenek”, meaning “Hope”. That’s a really clever touch from Jenkin, particularly as she only takes part of it home with her, like her hope has been shattered by the ship wreck. I was also completely unaware that lichen grows on freshly exposed surfaces, that makes so much sense. Thank you so much for watching, and thank you so much for sharing your insight. I knew I didn’t have everything but I wanted to have a crack at it anyway. I love films like this precisely because they spark so much discussion into their meaning and the themes, and I’m really glad you took the time to share your thoughts here. Thankyou, and thank you for subbing, I hope you find my future videos entertaining too!

[@vladsarkisov1231]

I appreciate the analysis, but as you mentioned the movie is nothing but a string of metaphors, and that to me is not a success.

[@candacedonald4087]

Im sorry this movie was awful. I stuck it out waiting for a shutter Island type reveal but nope.