Wonkette Movie Night: The Witches (1990)
'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!'
“The most important thing to know about real witches is this…
Real witches dress in ordinary clothes,
they live in ordinary houses and they work in ordinary jobs.”
Helga Evesham explains this to her grandson Luke with a warning. “I told him about witches so that he would always be aware.” Because the witches in this story “spend their time plotting to kill children” and yes this is supposed to be a kid’s movie. But it is derived from a novel written by Roald Dahl in 1983.
Any kid in a Dahl story was definitely about to go through some shit, from the blueberry child squishing and an acid trip boat ride on a chocolate river in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to the whacked out world of James and the Giant Peach, where the young boy who has lost his parents (like in The Witches) finds himself with his abusive aunts. But they are monsters, not anything like Luke’s loving grandmother Helga. I found a free Internet Archive link to James And The Peach. Save it for later, it is well worth a watch.
To bring a Dahl story to life requires talented artists and actors. And this film delivers with Jim Henson's Creature Shop creating the witches’ faces and animatronic mice; although fantastical, they don’t distract you from being absorbed into the story. This was the last movie that Jim Henson worked on; he died May 16, 1990.
Then there are the two women at the center of the story, portrayed by Anjelica Huston and Mai Zetterling. Both are amazing actors, with Anjelica being perfectly wicked and Mai being a badass grandma. In this story all of the witches are women but I think they are probably not confined to that considering they’re demonic beings and their human form is actually just a costume.
I almost forgot, to spot a witch look for skin that doesn’t seem to fit right. Plus they want to kill children. Now I’m not going to say that resembles certain people in the Trump orbit but okay I am going say that. Which considering that Dahl’s six-year-old daughter Olivia died of measles and he dedicated James and the Giant Peach to her, it all connects in a weird way.
The Witches is available for free on the Internet Archive. $3.99 in the usual places. Available ad-free on howdy (new Roku channel) with subscription ($2.99 month.)
The Witches stars Anjelica Huston, Jasen Fisher, Mai Zetterling, Rowan Atkinson, Brenda Blethyn, Charlie Potter, and Jane Horrocks. Directed by Nicolas Roeg.
To make requests and see the movie lists and schedules go to WonkMovie.
The animated short is The Witch’s Cat from BYU’s Center For Animation, directed by Abby Staker Graham.
Our next Movie Night selection is Mr. Smith Goes To Washington. It is free with ads on Tubi. Free on the Internet Archive. $3.99 in the usual places.
𝐁𝐎𝐍𝐔𝐒 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.After a test screening, Roald Dahl angrily expressed to the producers how "appalled" he was at "the vulgarity, the bad taste" and "actual terror" in certain parts of the film. Dahl demanded his name and the title be removed from the film prior to release, but after receiving an apologetic, complimentary letter from Jim Henson, Dahl grudgingly withdrew his threat.
I need to make the popcorn so i can eat it all before the movie!