October 29, 2012

Movie Monday: Hocus Pocus

Hocus Pocus"It's just a bunch of hocus pocus!"

The first time I saw Hocus Pocus,  I was just a little kid (maybe five or six) and my sister and I saw it somewhere.  We watched a VHS copy, because I grew up in the Dark Ages, and loved the movie.  There was music, adventure, a talking cat, and all sorts of craziness.  But then, I didn't know the movie's name.  I didn't know anyone else who'd seen it.  I thought my sister and I had dreamed it up and it didn't actually exist.  Then we saw it at my cousin's house.  It existed.

I absolutely, unequivocally love this movie.  I'm glad that it's found a cult audience despite bombing in theaters.  And yes, it has stood the test of time.  I recently showed it to my niece and nephew and they enjoyed it.  My niece, who is almost five, rarely sits still for an entire episode of Spongebob Squarepants, which is only twenty-five minutes long and her favorite television show.  Hocus Pocus held her spellbound for an hour and a half.  (Okay, her attention did waver a little until the witches showed up.)  After she made sure to tell me how much she liked it.

Hocus Pocus isn't your standard Disney film.  For one thing, most Disney films don't make multiple jokes about a teenage boy's virginity.  (Parents, don't worry.  They went over my head and my sister's when we were kids, and recently they went over my niece's head.)  There's even a scene, watching as an adult, that I realized was a G-rated version of masturbation.  And the Sanderson sisters are much scarier than most Disney villains.  Hocus Pocus opens with the death of a young child and another tortured before being cursed.  But that's part of what makes Hocus Pocus so much fun.  It trusts it's audience.  It's more funny than scary, but there's a real sense of darkness that sells the scary parts.



Plus, the cast is fantastic.  Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy are pitch perfect as the Sanderson sisters.  Bette is menacing, vain, and gets to exhibit her amazing pipes.  Sarah Jessica Parker is sexy, daffy, and absently vicious.  Kathy Najimy's face is a wonder to behold.  Omri Katz was familiar to me from Eerie, Indiana, one of my favorite childhood TV shows.  He anchors the child actors, which included the cute-but-not-too-cute Thora Birch.  And I still can't believe Thackery Binx (Sean Murray) is the guy from NCIS.

If you haven't seen this Halloween classic yet, watch it.  Buy it for your kids.  (Or your sibling's kids, whatever.)  Watch it on Halloween.  You can use it to start off a scary movie night, or as a break between two intense films.  For the kids, pair it with films like The Nightmare Before Christmas or Coraline.  I know lots of people watch it with Halloweentown.  You really can't go wrong as long as you watch it.

14 comments:

  1. I love this movie too! The witches crack me up every time. I've watched bits of it twice in the last week since it's on TV a lot right now. I was wondering last night (as I was watching it again) if any of the kids were still acting. I had no idea that was Sean Murray! Now I have to watch it again! Thanks for a good reminder of how fun this is. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Vinessa Shaw seems to show up in shows fairly regularly, and Omri Katz and Thora Birch periodically appear in something. (Birch more than Katz.)

      Delete
  2. This movie is great. My sister and a friend of mine love to point out that Sean Murray is in NCIS to pretty much anyone that will listen to us, because we find it so amusing! And we always thought he was Zachary. Crazy to think it's actually Thackery... I don't know WHEN we finally learned that though. lol But yeah, such a goodie...classic childhood film for me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I thought it was Zachary right up till checking the IMDB for names.

      Delete
  3. EEEEEEE! I haven't seen this in AGES, but OMG. I KNOW I get this mixed up with The Witches, but it's SUCH a fun film.

    And G-rated masturbation, you say? O__o

    Uh... I think it needs an adult re-watch. Sounds SO fun! ♥

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've actually never seen The Witches. I like the Roald Dahl book the movie is based on though.

      Delete
    2. I LOVE the movie. It's so dark and creepy and Angelica Huston [sp?] is amazing as always.

      And... I just re-read my comment. I don't want to watch it BECAUSE of g-rated *ahem*
      I just want to re-watch to see what went over my head as a kid XD

      Delete
    3. Anjelic Huston is the best! She's also in the newer Addams family films, which are great for Halloween.

      I figured! That was the main thing I noticed that definitely went over my head.

      Delete
  4. Oh goodness, I know I watched this show as a kid but I can't remember any of the details. It sounds like I should rewatch too!

    ReplyDelete
  5. From ABC Family's Facebook page today:

    Christmas is just around the corner but tonight we hope you have an amazing Halloween!

    If you're staying in, make sure to watch Hocus Pocus at 7pm/6c and 9pm/8c on ABC Family!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I loved this movie when I was younger! I seriously think that I saw it like a million times lol. I wanted a talking cat so bad. It was such a good memory for me and my childhood!

    Kristin @ Young Adult Book Haven

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad to meet another fan! Sabrina, the Teenage Witch also aided talking cat envy in my case.

      Delete

Thanks for commenting! To reduce spam I moderate all posts older than 14 days.

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...