The Witches

1990
PG
1h 31m

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

56K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

734

110

Anjelica Huston, Jasen Fisher, and Mai Zetterling in The Witches (1990)

Does Robert Zemeckis' 'The Witches' film look familiar? Check out our side-by-side comparison with scenes from Nicolas Roeg's 1990 adaptation of Roald Dahl's classic novel.

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Watch Shot for Shot: 'The Witches' (2020) vs. 'The Witches' (1990)

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Dark Fantasy Adventure Comedy Family Fantasy Horror Mystery

A young boy stumbles onto a witch convention and must stop them, even after he has been turned into a mouse.A young boy stumbles onto a witch convention and must stop them, even after he has been turned into a mouse.A young boy stumbles onto a witch convention and must stop them, even after he has been turned into a mouse.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

56K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

734

110

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
- 3 wins & 8 nominations total

Trivia
Liccy Dahl has stated that Roald Dahl never again requested someone for a role in his book after the producers of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) denied his request to cast Spike Milligan as the title character. But he was ecstatic when Anjelica Huston was cast as the Grand High Witch, as she had been Dahl's personal favorite for the role.

Goofs
When the Grand High Witch and her assistant enter her room while Luke gets the formula, they're wearing pointy shoes. Earlier, it was mentioned that witches never wear pointy shoes. However, the original book suggest the Grand High Witch does wear pointed shoes to great discomfort and hates wearing them, this fact is not mentioned in the movie to explain the shoes.

Quotes
Dora: [to another witch, under her breath] We can't possibly wipe out all of them.
Grand High Witch: Who spoke? Who dares to argue with me.
[she notices Dora, points to her]
Grand High Witch: It was you!
Dora: I didn't mean to argue, your grandness.
Grand High Witch: You dare to argue with me!
Dora: No, honestly, it just was a...
Grand High Witch: A stupid witch who answers back, must burn till her bones are black!
Dora: No, no!
Grand High Witch: A foolish witch without a brain, must sizzle into fire and flame! A witch who dares to say I'm wrong, will not be with us... very long!
[she zaps the witch with her eyes]

Crazy credits
The opening credits zooms towards the camera above an unknown snow landscape.

Alternate versions
All UK versions were cut by 2 seconds to secure a PG rating. The mouse transformation was slightly shortened and a shot of a witch's bloody scalp when she removes her wig was removed.

Connections
Featured in Going Live!: Episode #3.30 (1990)

Soundtracks
Happy Birthday
(uncredited)
Written by Mildred J. Hill and Patty S. Hill

User reviews211

Review

Featured review

8/10

Unjustly forgotten fantasy

Very strange fantasy in which a young boy Luke (Jasen Fisher) and his friend Bruno (Charles Potter) get in trouble with some witches (led by Anjelicia Huston). Luke's Norwegian aunt (Mai Zetterling), a former witch, helps him battle the others.

When this came out in 1990 critics loved it, but audiences stayed away. Real witches attacked the film because it portrayed witches as evil, ugly and wanting to kill all children. They overreacted--it's just a FANTASY, not reality. Also it was way too strong (and strange) to attract a family audience...too scary for kids and adults assumed it was a kids movie. But it is a good fantasy for high schoolers and adults.

Nicholas Roegs' direction is off-putting (he directs it like it's high art), but the special effects are truly incredible (especially the mice) and there are wonderful performances by Zetterling and Huston (going WAY over the top in her acting).

It's a very strange movie--definitely a one of a kind. It's worth a look.