Honestly, very few things in life fill me with more joy and happiness than re-watching the favorite movies of my childhood during lazy Sunday afternoons, now more or less 20 to 25 years after I last saw them. During the past couple of years, I discovered that I still love them all just as much as back when I was a geeky 9- year-old with an unhealthy interest in macabre kids' films! I'm talking about titles like "Dark Crystal", "The Watcher in the Woods", "Return to Oz", "Island at the Top of the World" and "Something Wicked this Way Comes". "Escape to Witch Mountain" was also on my list of childhood favorites, and re-watching this particular one also became another emotional milestone for me, since I watched it together with my 6-year-old son! We live in Belgium, so he doesn't speak English and he can't properly read subtitles yet, so I pretty much narrated the entire movie to him. But that was a big pleasure since he was clearly just as impressed and intrigued as I was 25 years ago and he truly loved all the legendary scenes, like with the flying RV, the trained bear and the upside down helicopter! Now, nearly a week after having seen the film he still talks about it and he particularly feels proud about having watched a more mature movie whereas his friends at school are still just watching the animated Disney movies!
But anyways, even my more objective opinion states that "Escape to Witch Mountain" is a recommendable film for all types of audiences. It has an engaging plot, good pacing, plenty of versatile action and – most of all – wonderful acting performances. Back when I was 9, I obviously didn't know who Donald Pleasance or Ray Milland were, but over the years I became a horror fanatic and now they are both ranked among my favorite actors of all time. It's good to see that even in Disney movies they remain loyal to their reputations and depict villainous characters that are equally menacing and loathsome as in regular hardcore horror movies! The story introduces two cherubic but orphaned siblings, Tia and Tony, with sensational supernatural powers. The girl Tia can foretell things before they occur and talk to animals, while the boy has telekinetic capacities. Nobody knows where they come from, although Tia has vague recollections of a shipwreck, and they are placed in a boarding school where they clearly don't fit in with the other children. When the girl saves the life of a certain Mr. Deranian (Donald Pleasance) by warning him about an accident about to happen, he is immediately intrigued by her powers and informs his employer Aristotle Bolt (Ray Milland). Their intentions obviously aren't peaceful and even though they offer Tia and Tony a giant room full of toys, the girl senses they are in danger and they flee from the estate. With the - initially reluctant – help of lone tourist Jason O'Day (Eddie Albert), they set out on a dangerous journey in search for their true personalities. "Escape to Witch Mountain" is still a great and adventurous kids' movie, accomplished with a lot more heart and passion than nowadays. I hope to quickly track down the sequel "Return to Witch Mountain" as well, as it has an equally impressive cast featuring Christopher Lee and Bette Davis.
