Return from Witch Mountain (1978)

Tia and her brother Tony have supernatural powers, can communicate and move things with the power of their mind alone. They arrive on Earth for a visit in Los Angeles. When Tony uses his ... See full summary »

Director:

John Hough

Writers:

Malcolm Marmorstein, Alexander Key (characters)

Stars:

Bette Davis, Christopher Lee, Kim Richards

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bette Davis	...	Letha
Christopher Lee	...	Victor
Kim Richards	...	Tia
Ike Eisenmann	...	Tony
Jack Soo	...	Mr. Yokomoto
Anthony James	...	Sickle
Richard Bakalyan	...	Eddie (as Dick Bakalyan)
Ward Costello	...	Mr. Clearcole
Christian Juttner	...	Dazzler
Brad Savage	...	Muscles
Poindexter Yothers	...	Crusher (as Poindexter)
Jeffrey Jacquet	...	Rocky
Stu Gilliam	...	Dolan
William Bassett	...	Operations Officer (as William H. Bassett)
Tom Scott	...	Monitor

Storyline

Tia and her brother Tony have supernatural powers, can communicate and move things with the power of their mind alone. They arrive on Earth for a visit in Los Angeles. When Tony uses his powers to prevent an accident, he gets into the hands of Dr. Gannon, a ruthless scientist who's constantly striving for power over the world. He puts him a device into the brain that allows him to control Tony's will. Tia gets help from a kids gang to free Tony and save the Earth.

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Plot Keywords:

gang | sequel | supernatural power | spacecraft | child's point of view | 

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Taglines:

Sinister forces from this world against two young space travellers from another.

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Genres:

Family | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Fantasy

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Volta da Montanha Enfeitiçada

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bette Davis agreed to do the movie because it was a picture her grand children could watch. Moreover, Davis had three people tending to her on the set throughout the shooting of the film.

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Goofs

Near the beginning of the movie the two children and Uncle Bene are walking away from the Rose Bowl. As the camera pans back you can see crosses marked on the ground for where the actors are supposed to stand and walk.

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Quotes

Letha: Who's that?
Tony: That's my sister, my sister Tia.
Letha: Well this is no time for a family reunion.

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Connections

Featured in Making the 'Return' Trip (2003)

User Reviews

Mad Scientists Use Alien Kids

This is a fine sequel to one of Walt Disney's better family projects Escape from Witch Mountain. The adult stars are Bette Davis and Christopher Lee as an old dowager financing a mad scientist in some nefarious experiments.

These two happen on the alien kids from Witch Mountain, Kim Richards and Ike Eisenman, when the kids are on holiday to Earth once again. They kidnap Ike after seeing an example of his powers of levitation and seek to use him and fit him with a mind control device that Lee's been perfecting.

Lee's dreaming some big dreams and Davis has some more mundane schemes like a trip to some gambling house or racetrack. Both of them looking like they are having one grand old time hamming it up for the cameras.

Of course the film wouldn't work at all if it were not for the winning personalities of Richards and Eisenman. Both come across as real kids, not sure of the extent of their own powers rather than Hollywood juvenile actors.

The whole of the film is Richards pursuing and trying to rescue her brother and in the process she recruits a gang of juveniles escaping from a truant officer played by the ever deadpan funny Jack Soo. Eventually Soo joins forces with the kids and proves of some help.

Both Escape to Witch Mountain and this sequel are fine family entertainment, some of the best that Disney studio produced.