Hocus Pocus
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Movie Reviews of Hocus Pocus
Movie Review: Hocus Pocus (1993)
Summary: 5 Stars
Halloween has never been this hilarious. Disney has always had a way with making great family movies, but HOCUS POCUS just tops all famiy movies.
On October 31st, 1693 in the small town of Salem, Massachutsets, three witch sisters: WINIFRED SANDERSON (played by Bette Midler), SARAH SANDERSON (played by Sarah Jessica Parker), & MARY SANDERSON (played by Kathy Najimy) have kidnapped a little girl by the name of EMILY BINX. Her brother, THACKERY BINX (played by Sean Murray) has followed them to their little house, hidden deep in the woods. Sipping a potion they have made especially for her, Thackery appears and tries to save his little sister, but he is too late, for this potion has brought Emily's life force, where they suck out her life, which turns the Sanderson sisters from old to young. As punishment for stumbling upon the sisters and nearly foiling their plan, Winifred and her sisters transform Thackery into a black cat for all eternity. At that moment, the villagers of Salem, led by Thackery and Emily's mother and father, grab the sisters and ready them to be hung in front of the Salem townfolk. At that moment, Winifred's book of evil spells and potions lets it be known, silently, that on Halloween Night, a virgin shall resurrect the witches. After Winifred informs the town of her curse, they are hanged and killed.
It is now October 31s, 1993, Halloween, 300 years after the Sanderson sisters were killed. There is a new kid in town named MAX DENNISON (played by Omri Katz). He has moved to Salem with his mother and father (played by Charles Rockett and Stephanie Faracy), and his little sister, DANI (played by Thora Birch) from L.A. Max is having trouble adjusting to the small town of Salem. After leaving school, Max has a little conversation with the beautiful ALISON (played by Vanessa Shaw), who Max goes to school with. Max has crush on Alison, for Alison likes Max too, but is a little shy. On his way home, Max runs into two bullies, who rob him of his sneakers, putting more of a bitterness in Max.
Two or three hours later, Max and Dani head out to go trick or treating. They have a brief argument, but Max, feeling sorry for treating Dani badly, makes up with her. They head into a huge house. They find that this huge house is the residence of Alison. The three talk for awhile and find that Alison's mother used to own the Sanderson Sisters' Museum, which was actually the Sanderson's little old house. Max thinks it's a good idea to go. The three head out to the house where Alison gives them a tour. They find Winifred's book locked in a glass case, where Max finds the black-flamed candle. The candle, when lit on Halloween night with a full-moon in the black sky, will awaken the Sanderson sisters. His stupidity leads Max into lighting the candle, where Winifred, Sarah, and Mary return. They have a brief outting with the sisters, where Max tells Alison and Dani to head out, where he'll catch up. As he leaves, he runs into...Thackery Binx. Turns out Thackery is still in the form of a cat, but he has the ability to talk. Binx decides to help out the kids, where has Max steal Winifred's book.
The Sanderson sisters fly out to find the kids and Binx. They are at a nearby cemetery, where Binx shows the kids the grave of a man named BILLY BUTCHERSON (played by Doug Jones). Billy was Winnie's boyfriend, but she found him one day fooling around with Sarah, forcing Winifred to kill Billy. Binx then shows the kids the grave of his beloved sister, Emily, where tells them of what happened to her. But at that moment, the sisters arrive and wreck more havoc, including resurrecting Billy Butcherson.
The kids arrive at the townhall party, where they try to tell Mr. and Mrs. Dennison about this, but the sisters show up and break into a song and dance, putting a spell on all of the party to DANCE! DANCE! DANCE! UNTIL YOU DIE! The kids escape into the high school and try torching the sisters, but they escape as the kids sleep at Max and Dani's house. Alison and Max head downstairs, ready to walk Alison home, but they hear noise from upstairs. They find the book in missing and find that the sisters have Dani. They explode on out through the roof and head out on their way. Mary and Winifred head on home, where Sarah, through singing, has all the children of Salem in a trance, where they will head over to the Sanderson house to have their lives sucked by the sisters. At that moment, Alison remembers what Winifred had said just before they took Dani with them. She tells Max that Winifred had said the candle's magic will soon be spent and Dawn approaches. This means that the black-flamed candle only brought the witches back for this one Halloween Night. They have to steal the lives of children to in their youth and remain immortal. If they cannot do that in time, they will explode to dust when the sun rises.
As the sisters try to make Dani drink the potion, Max enters and saves Dani. But Winifred realizes that he has tricked the sisters again, where they head out after Alison, Dani, and Max back to the cemetery. The kids run into Billy Butcherson, but they find he only wants to help the kids defeat the sisters. Winifred actually kills Binx in the process, but they cannot get the kids in time, for the sun has come up and turned the sisters into dust. The witches are dead, Thackery's soul is free, where he is reunited with Emily.
This movie was a really fun-filled movie for all kids. Some images maybe a little frightening, but your children will really enjoy this film. I have enjoyed this film since I was eight years old. A definite family classic.
Movie Review: Terrific Halloween Disney fun!
Summary: 5 Stars
Though some Pagons and Wiccans may find "Hocus Pocus" to be insulting to their religion, it is really not. It is just another little harmless Disney gem that was meant to entertain. And boy, did it EVER!PLOT SUMMARY: The story of "Hocus Pocus" revolves around the three evil witches--Winifred (Bette Midler), Sarah (Sarah Jessica Parker), and Mary (Kathy Najimy) Sanderson of Colonial Salem, Massachusetts. They are hung to death by the townspeople after they supposibly killed a young girl and her older brother, Thackery Binks. But in reality, they sucked the life out of the young girl to make themselves younger and more beautiful, and turned Thackery into a black cat. Right before they died however, they promised the townspeople that they would come back to life and suck all the lives out of children in Salem when a virgin lights the black candle in their home. Flashfoward to preasent day, Salem. Max Dennison (Omri Katz) is a rebellious teenager who recently moved to the town with his family from Los Angeles. On Halloween night, Max is forced to take his kid sister, Dani (a young Thora Birch), out trick-or-treating. While out (and after being bullied by some neighborhood guys), Max and Dani arrive at a very large house. It happens to be the home of Allison (Vinessa Shaw), Max's new crush. In school that day, Max and Allison's teacher told them the story of the Sanderson sisters, which Max didn't believe. To impress Allison, Max suggests that they go to the home of the Sanderson sisters so he can light the black candle and prove that the story is false. Both Allison and Dani, who strongly believe in the story, agree to go. Once at the Sanderson house, Max is about to light the candle when they are stopped by a strange black cat who can talk--it's Thackery Binks, who warns Max not to light the candle. Max, however, ignores Thackery and lights it anyway, bringing the sisters back to life so they can finish their sinister scheme. Now, it's up to Max, Allison, Dani, and Thackery to finish the sisters off once and for all.
MY OVERALL THOUGHTS: I found this film extremely hilarious and entertaining as a kid, and I still do today. Excellent acting performances by the entire cast--Midler, Parker, and Najimy are particular standouts, as well as Katz. The special effects are great, and there's a wonderful storyline. The music is haunting, too. Wish I could find the soundtrack CD. Though slightly predictable, it is still a lot of fun. The DVD lacks though, big-time. Only drawback--should have added special features, at least a trailer or commentary track. If you want thrills and laughs on Halloween, look no further than "Hocus Pocus"! The DVD is available in wide screen format.
I highly recommend "Hocus Pocus".
Score:
100/100
A+
Movie Review: Maybe It's Just Me
Summary: 5 Stars
I got to thinking what movies about witches are the best. I could only think of a handful like "The Witches of Eastwick", "The Craft", "The Witches", and "Hocus Pocus"; two very dark, adult films and two more family oriented films. How I came to those decisions was me thinking about how witches were portrayed; you know, the classic characteristics that you got about the as you grew up like: 1. Flight. Yes, all films show flight but it's only 'Hocus Pocus' that shows flight on broomticks; the classic way. 2. Spells/Magic. All four had them but which one had lightning and electricity coming out of thier fingertips? - 'Hocus Pocus'! 3. The wardrobe. 'Hocus Pocus' was the only one that seemed to be going for the most authentic look for a witch. Therefore, I think 'Hocus Pocus' is without a doubt the best film about witches since 1993.
I know this sounds crazy. I'm the kind of person who wouldn't be caught dead telling someone that I abosolutely loved this movie. My kinds of films are far more adult (i.e. P.T. Anderson's Magnolia, The Hours, Pulp Fiction, Lost in Translation). So to go from that to this is a big step for me! OK. In all seriousness, I can't stress how much FUN this film is! I thouroughly enjoyed it so much and I'm over the age of 20! I know it's target audience is fairly young but I probably wouldn't want my little ones under the age of 10 to watch it. Yes, it's Disney but this movie has some pretty daring content for the regular family Disney fare we all know. There's a handful of curse words, though small ones but still enough to not want your small children repeating them. Heads are beheaded (with no blood), dead people come up from the grave, and a black cat gets run over flat. Mind you, this is all centered around three witches who are reserected by a virgin (if don't think your kids are ready to know what a virgin is, then you might want to skip this. The word is thrown around a couple of times, as a joke of course). Their mission: to suck the souls out of all the children in Salem! Pretty risky stuff, huh?- for Dinsey!
I am so surprised that this was such a bomb in theaters. It truely is an underrated effort. The production value is top notch. The special effects are really good and hold up really well even in our "matrix-esque" era. The preformances are great. You have to think, these are 17th century witches we're discussing. They have to be somewhat enjoyable to watch. Luckily, they are. Bette is perfect as the head honcho. Kathy Naijimy and the wonderful Sarah Jessica Parker are equally fabulous. If you watch and love "Sex and the City", then you'll get a kick out of watching Miss Bradshaw bumble around. Overall, I was totally bewitched!
Movie Review: Outstanding Halloween Comedy, Horror, and Suspense
Summary: 5 Stars
Along with "Clue," this is what I consider one of the greatest Halloween movies ever made. It starts with the death of 3 witches (Winifred, Sarah, and Mary). Also, Zachary gets turned into a black cat by them after he unsuccessfully tries to save his sister Emily. We then move to a present day classroom in Salem where a class has heard about what happened. Did what we see really happen, or was it just an acted out story the teacher was telling? GREAT AMBIGUITY! Max doesn't believe the story, which makes him somewhat of an outcast. He seems interested in Allison; she is not exactly rude to him, but she doesn't seem overly interested in forming a relationship with him either. We also see that Max has some problems with his younger sister Danielle. (He doesn't want to take her trick or treating.) But they patch things up, and they run into Allison. They decide to visit where the 3 witches they learned about in class died. In a dramatic, but also hilarious fashion, the 3 witches are resurrected, and they plan their revenge on Salem. This movie is great that while the 3 witches are unquestionably evil, they carry a charm that makes them hilarious and lovable despite. Basically, they want to kill enough people so that they can make a potion that will enable them to live forever. (Another thing that is so funny is that they are trying to take over a world they don't know. They don't know what a bus is; they think fire men are witch hunters; they think the trick or treaters are real monsters, etc.) In an especially hilarious moment, Winifred walks into a kitchen and says: "Behold! A torture chamber!" Allison, Max, and Danielle, along with the black cat Zachary are sometimes uneasy allies, but they are determined to stop the witches from taking over Salem. Overall, there is a phenomenal combination of horror, suspense, and comedy. Even characters with small parts like Danielle's parents make the most of their roles. (Danielle's mother is humiliated when she tries to explain an R rated costume she wore to an adult party. Of course, she didn't expect Danielle to find her there!) There is also a great climax with a touch of tragedy. Probably one of the best things about this movie is that often we are not sure as to whether we are watching a horror movie or a comedy. But it's all Halloween! And of course with Bette Midler as the head witch, there is a great song in the middle (which in this case turns out to be a spell). If you love Halloween, this movie is a MUST!Movie Review: Trick or Treat
Summary: 5 Stars
I think I first saw this around 1994, forgot about it but stayed in the far recesses of my mind (mostly the sight of Kathy Najimy flying a vacuum) and then saw it again in the summer of 1998, causing it to now be one of my favorite movies. The teens/kids acting ability in this movie ranges from sub-par (Shaw and on-and-off again with Katz) to obnoxiously bad (Birch). The two "bullies" are your quintessential '90s bullies, complete with '90s lingo (tubular). So the main focus on why this is one of my favorites are the three leads; Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker (who hasn't aged well in my opinion) and Kathy Najimy. Midler (probably my favorite) plays Winifred as the more serious of the three but is pretty funny in her own right (most of her funny lines come from her interactions with her sisters) but she can pose a serious threat when needed. She's the one with the most power, being able to cast spells and fire lightning bolts from their fingertips (someone was watching Star Wars when they wrote this, though some person in cinema history might've fired lightning from their fingertips before the Emperor). And of course being the star of the picture, the Divine Miss M gets her own musical number, singing a reorchestrated "I Put A Spell On You". And she wears my favorite color, so no complaints. Parker's character Sarah is the idiot of the group. She's also the sexiest of the group and is positively crazy over any man she sees. Her power is a siren song to lure the children to the cottage. And what a song it is. "Come Little Children" is a beautiful song but can also feel menacing and haunting at the same time. Najimy is plump Mary, the most level-headed of the group and has an interesting taste in hairdos. Like Midler, she also has her funny moments (one of my favorites being after Winifred explains what they must do before the sun rises). Her power is being able to sniff out children, which comes across as weird. I mean its useful for what the witches' do, but its a shame she couldn't get a more interesting power. Overall, a satisfying movie, fit perfectly for Halloween. And if you'll notice the name of the director, its the same man who would destroy the musical genre with the dreaded High School Musical, this film probably being the only good nostalgic one he's ever done.