After waiting three centuries for the witchy Sanderson sisters to get back to Salem and seek revenge in 1993, three more decades not much of a stretch for this sequel. With an extended prologue to fill in a slightly revamped setup in 1693 Salem, the girls go back to the future when ‘called’ by a trio of High Schoolers and an occult shopkeeper who has their old book of spells under lock & key. Naturally, it’s Hallowe’en, with half the town ‘Goth’d’ up for the occasion, even a Sanderson lookalike contest, so the gals (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy) fit right in. And not looking much older, Najimy hardly at all! (Now, that’s spooky.) Credit readers will spot a number of positions men had in the original now taken by women (director, scripter, editor) while the film (if memory serves) feels much the same. Director Anne Fletcher & editor Julia Wong use an odd rhythm in the early going, very choppy, but about an hour in, there’s a big musical number for the witches that soon infects the whole town (already in the streets for Hallowe’en) and the film comes roaring to life. Happy sailing after that, in spite of Disney Channel levels of acting by the High Schoolers. (Now, that’s scary, but not a deal breaker.
SCREWY THOUGHT OF THE DAY: The producers must have known how good the musical number was. And while director Fletcher has things like STEP UP on her C.V., it has such a different vibe to it, you half wonder if they secretly brought back Kenny Ortega from the first film to handle it. (They also add on a faux recording session with a new number during the credits. Excellent!)
DOUBLE-BILL: Might as well see how HOCUS POCUS 1993 holds up.
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