Psycho's Movie Reviews #27: Hocus Pocus (1993)

ocus Pocus is a 1993 American fantasy comedy film directed by Kenny Ortega and written by Neil Cuthbert and Mick Garris. The film follows a villainous comedic trio of witches (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy) who are inadvertently resurrected by a teenage boy (Omri Katz) in Salem, Massachusetts, on Halloween night.

The film was released in the United States on July 16, 1993, by Walt Disney Pictures. Upon its release, it received mixed reviews from film critics and was a box office failure, possibly losing Disney around $16.5 million during its theatrical run. However, largely through many annual airings on Disney Channel and Freeform (formerly ABC Family) throughout the month of October, Hocus Pocus has been rediscovered by audiences, resulting in a yearly spike in home video sales of the film every Halloween season. The annual celebration of Halloween has helped make the film a cult classic among Americans born in the 1980s and early 1990s.

A sequel, written by Jen D'Angelo, directed by Anne Fletcher and set for a 2022 release, is currently in production as a Disney+ original film.

Plot:

On October 31, 1693, in Salem, Massachusetts, Thackery Binx witnesses his little sister, Emily, being whisked away to the woods by the Sanderson sisters, three witches named Winifred, Sarah, and Mary. At their cottage, the witches feed Emily a potion which allows them to absorb her youth and regain their own, killing her in the process. Thackery confronts the witches, but is transformed into a black cat, cursed to live forever with his guilt for not saving Emily. Suddenly, the townsfolk, led by Thackery's friend, Elijah, and Binx's father, arrest the sisters and sentence them to be hanged for the murder of Thackery and Emily. Before their execution, Winifred casts a curse that will resurrect the sisters during a full moon on All Hallows' Eve if a virgin lights the Black Flame Candle. Thackery decides to guard the cottage to ensure no one summons the witches.

Three centuries later, on October 31, 1993, Max Dennison is feeling unsettled from his family's sudden move from Los Angeles, California, to Salem. On Halloween, Max takes his younger sister Dani out trick-or-treating, where they meet Max's new crush Allison. In an effort to impress Allison, Max invites her to show him the Sanderson house to convince him the witches were real.

Inside the Sanderson cottage, now a former museum, Max lights the Black Flame Candle and inadvertently resurrects the witches due to his virginity. The witches attempt to suck the soul of Dani, but Max comes to her rescue. Escaping, Max steals Winifred's spellbook (grimoire) on advice from Thackery, who now goes by his last name of Binx. He takes the group to an old cemetery (as witches can't set foot on hallowed ground) where he shows them the graves of his sister and Billy Butcherson. Billy was once Winifred's lover, but when she found him kissing her sister Sarah, Winifred poisoned him and sewed his mouth shut so that he couldn't tell her secrets even in death. The witches eventually catch up with them and Winifred raises Billy as a zombie to chase them on foot.

The witches try to acclimate to the 20th century, but are horrified when they discover Halloween has become a festival of disguises. They pursue the children across town using Mary's enhanced sense of smell. Winifred also reveals that the spell that brought them back only works on Halloween and unless they can suck the life out of one child, they'll turn to dust when the sun rises. Max, Dani, and Allison find their parents at the City Hall Halloween party, where Winifred enchants the partygoers to dance until they die. At Jacob Bailey High School, the children trap the witches in a kiln to burn them alive. While the children are celebrating, the witches' curse revives them again.

Not realizing the witches have survived, Max and Allison open the spellbook intending to reverse the spell on Binx. The open spellbook reveals the location of the group, and the witches track them down, kidnap Dani and Binx, and recover the spellbook. Sarah uses her siren-like song to entice Salem's children, luring them to the Sanderson cottage. Max and Allison free Dani and Binx by tricking the witches into believing that sunrise was an hour early. Thinking that they are done for, the witches panic and pass out, allowing Max, Dani, Allison, and Binx to escape.

Back at the cemetery, the group is ambushed by Billy who then takes Max's knife, cuts open his stitched up mouth, and insults Winifred, therefore joining Max, Allison, Dani and Binx against the witches. The witches attack, and Winifred attempts to use the last vial of potion to suck the soul from Dani. Binx leaps on Winifred and knocks the potion out of her hand. Max drinks the potion, forcing the witches to take him instead of Dani. The sun starts to rise just as Winifred is about to finish draining Max's life force; in the ensuing struggle, Allison, Dani, and Billy fend off Mary and Sarah, and Max and Winifred fall onto the hallowed ground in the cemetery, causing Winifred to turn into stone. As the sun finishes rising above the horizon, Mary and Sarah are disintegrated into dust along with Winifred's stone body.

With the witches gone, Max, Dani, and Allison say goodbye to Billy, as he returns to his grave. The witches' deaths break Binx's curse, allowing him to finally die and freeing his soul. Appearing as a spirit, Binx thanks the group for their help and bids farewell to them as he is reunited with the spirit of Emily.

The exhausted partygoers, including Max and Dani's parents, oblivious to their enchantment, are freed when the spell is broken. Meanwhile, at the Sanderson's cottage, Ice and Jay, who previously tormented Max and Dani, remain imprisoned in cages and sing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" to pass the time. Winifred's spell book is seen opening its eye, revealing it is still alive and the witches could possibly return again.

Production

Development:

In the 1994 TV documentary Hocus Pocus: Begin the Magic, and on the film's Blu-ray release, producer David Kirschner explains how he came up with the idea for the film one night. He and his young daughter were sitting outside and his neighbour's black cat strayed by. Kirschner invented a tale of how the cat was once a boy who was changed into a feline three hundred years ago by three witches.

Hocus Pocus started life as a script by Mick Garris, that was bought by Walt Disney Pictures in 1984. The film's working title was Disney's Halloween House, it was much darker and scarier, and its protagonists were all 12-year-olds. Garris and Kirschner pitched it to Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment; Spielberg saw Disney as a competitor to Amblin in the family film market at the time and refused to co-produce a film with his "rival."

Writing:

Various rewrites were made to the script to make the film more comedic and made two of its young protagonists into teenagers; however, production was stalled several times until 1992, when Bette Midler expressed interest in the script and the project immediately went forward. Midler, who plays the central antagonist of the film (originally written for Cloris Leachman), is quoted as saying that Hocus Pocus "was the most fun I'd had in my career up to that point".

Casting:

(FUN FACT) Leonardo DiCaprio was originally offered the lead role of Max but declined it to pursue What's Eating Gilbert Grape.

Filming:

My Review:

Best Halloween movie ever! The Sanderson sisters are the best!!! My favourite sister is Sarah Sanderson I love how funny and dumb she is, she makes me laugh multiple times through out the film and I love how she isn't as wicked as Winifred and she isn't constantly worried about impressing her older sister. I've seen this movie literally 100 times and I'll watch it 100 more times that's how fantastic it is. I'm so surprised it has low ratings it is hilarious and its funny to see all of these wonderful actresses (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy,) play these mean but yet funny witches.

Yet another movie that I love! Total side note; every year on Halloween me and my parents turn all the house lights off - so people (trick or treaters) think nobody is home - and we watch this film - it's basically our Halloween tradition. Due to recognising the dark plot points of the film, the primary target audience would be families, people aged 7+ (anyone can watch this film really, I know a lot of elderly who like this film too).

There's no doubt that yous have all watched this movie; 10/10. Halloween is not complete without this movie 🎃 I have read the 1 and 2 stars reviews, and a lot of people think that this movie is cheesy and cringe, but it really isn't. I would say it's funny, because the witches make it funny through their personality and how they handle things. I watch this movie every year on October and I never get bored of it. The cast is great, and so is the story. Also, I love the songs - "Come little Children" and "I put a spell on you". It is so fun!

Hocus Pocus 2 is said to come on Autumn 2022, and I'm looking forward to it!