Return from Witch Mountain (1978)

User Rating:

5.7/10   

Director:

John Hough

Writers:

Malcolm Marmorstein (written by)
Alexander Key (characters)

Release Date:

10 March 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Adventure | Sci-Fi | Fantasy

Tagline:

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

Plot:

Tia and her brother Tony have supernatural powers, can communicate and move things with the power of their mind alone...

Plot Keywords:

Gang | Supernatural Power | Child Abuse | Sequel | Telekinesis

Cast

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

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone Sound Recording)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Singapore:PG | Canada:G (video rating) | Australia:G | UK:U | USA:G | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Walt Disney Productions

Trivia:

Director John Hough was instrumental in casting character actor Anthony James as Sickle.

Quotes:

Tia: Tony, why are you doing these things? Why are you using your powers against me?

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Walt Disney Comedy and Magic Revue (1985) (V)

Well done follow up to the original

This is a very well done sequel to "Escape to which mountain" Tony and Tia(Ike Eisenmann & Kim Richards)are back! This time, they come back to LA(they come via space ship and land on the 50 yard line at the rose bowl!)for a vacation.

On their way to the motel, the cab they are riding in runs out of gas. When the cab driver leaves to go get gas, Tony and Tia have visions of a man falling from a tall building. Tony goes to help him. Enter Letha and Victor(Bette Davis & Christopher Lee)who are testing a mind control device that Sickle(Anthony James)is wearing. The test goes wrong when Letha grabs the remote control from victor and drops it on the ground.

When Victor and Letha see Tony's powers, they repay Tony for saving Sickle's life by kidnapping him. Meanwhile, when Tony hasn't returned to the cab-she goes looking for him. He is nowhere to be found. After a short while, a pre-teen group of kids(Whom they call themselves "The earthquake gang)are running away from another gang-Tia helps them escape from this gang. They then help Tia look for Tony.

I like the earthquake gang. These kids, despite how they dress are not really a violent gang-I think they have a tender side of them-they want to help people. Now I realize that this is not based in any real reality, it's only a movie-they are not to be taken seriously. I get a laugh out of them. Although, they try to act tough they don't scare anyone.

Victor and Letha are in their Lab testing this mind control device on Tony. After seeing the success of their tests, they both use Tony for their own evil ends. Letha wants money, she takes Tony to the museum in an attempt to steal 3 million dollars worth of gold which is on display. Things of course go wrong when they underestimate the weight of the gold bars. Victor on the other hand wants to rule the world and he uses Tony to take over a plutonium processing plant.

Tia then shows up-and a show down between Tia and Tony ensues-you will need to watch the film to see how it ends.

Although not the best sequel, it's better than most(Esp. by Disney). I recently got my DVD copies of both films. It's been remastered in THX, Dolby 5.1 surround sound. It sounds better than ever.