The theme of magic is a regular one for filmmakers, one that Hollywood is often quite keen to produce, being able to throw bagfuls of money at special effects, in a Harry Potter kind of way.

So it’s interesting when other countries have a crack at something magical, and although they don’t have access to the kind of outrageous budgets Hollywood does, they can still be hugely effective, as this film from Chile proves.

1881 on the small island of Chiloé, just off the west coast of Chile, works 13 year old Rosa (Valentina Véliz Caileo). She works as a maid for a German family who have settled there as sheep farmers.

One day they wake to discover that the entire flock of sheep have been murdered, wearing some kind of handmade grass collar around each one. The German father immediately blames the locals, grabbing hold of Rosa to force her to tell her who has done this. Luckily for her, her father intervenes, but unluckily for him, he soon finds himself dead.

This sends Rosa out into the world on her own, having no other family, seeking justice. She ends up at the door of the local mayor, but he isn’t terribly helpful. She finds herself at the home of Mateo (Daniel Antivilo), a native of the island, who finds himself part of an organisation that dabbles with witchcraft.

So with the law ignoring her cries for justice, Rosa decides to take an alternative route, utilising the powers of a forgotten people.

There is something truly magical about Chilean director Christopher Murray’s film, and not necessarily in a witchcraft way.

It is a very rural tale, where an indigenous people almost find themselves second class citizens with the arrival of wealthy settlers to their land.

It’s beautifully shot, albeit in a stark and bleak fashion, with a landscape that’s far from hospitable.

Young Caileo gives a striking performance as Rosa, having to carry a fairly dark story on her young shoulders throughout, which she does with impressive maturity.

Murray does well too conveying a sense of witchcraft, relying on no special effects whatsoever, instead leaning on more natural methods, such a potions made with natural ingredients.

And although the film’s title suggests a magical adventure, in truth it’s a young woman’s quest for justice, who just so happens to go to fairly extraordinary lengths to get it.

There’s a brooding silence throughout that only serves to sustain the eerie atmosphere that falls upon the island, making for a truly magical and haunting experience.