Hocus Pocus (1993)

After 300 years, three sister witches are resurrected in Salem Massachusetts on Halloween night, and it us up to two teenagers, a young girl, and an immortal cat to put an end to the witches reign of terror once and for all.

Director:

Kenny Ortega

Writers:

David Kirschner (story), Mick Garris (story),

Stars:

Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy

2 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bette Midler	...	Winifred
Sarah Jessica Parker	...	Sarah
Kathy Najimy	...	Mary
Omri Katz	...	Max
Thora Birch	...	Dani
Vinessa Shaw	...	Allison
Jodie Rivera	...	Emily (as Amanda Shepherd)
Larry Bagby	...	Ernie 'Ice' (as Larry Bagby III)
Tobias Jelinek	...	Jay
Stephanie Faracy	...	Jenny
Charles Rocket	...	Dave
Doug Jones	...	Billy Butcherson
Karyn Malchus	...	Headless Billy Butcherson
Sean Murray	...	Thackery
Steve Voboril	...	Elijah

Storyline

300 years have passed since the Sanderson sisters were executed for practicing dark witchcraft. Returning to life thanks to a combination of a spell spoken before their demise and the accidental actions of Max, the new-kid-in-town, the sisters have but one night to secure their continuing existence...

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Plot Keywords:

halloween | cat | candle | salem massachusetts | witchcraft | 

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Taglines:

It's just a bunch of Hocus Pocus!

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Horror

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some scary sequences, and for language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 July 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Abracadabra

Filming Locations:

Plimouth Plantation - 137 Warren Avenue, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$28,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,430,123 (UK) (12 November 1993)

Gross:

£1,992,531 (UK) (10 December 1993)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The script was written as a Disney Channel Original Movie; however, it caught the eyes of a few bigger studio heads at Disney, and they felt it was strong enough to carry a good theatrical performance.

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Goofs

The witches take Emily in the morning, However they are hung (supposedly soon afterwards) at night. If it only took Thackery a short time to follow Sarah and Emily to the house then it shouldn't have taken the town folk the better part of the day to arrive.

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Quotes

Winifred Sanderson: [sings while flying] Book! Come to mommy!
Voice of Thackery Binx: [Jumps on the book to prevent it from floating up to Winifred, with a screech] Afraid not!
Winifred Sanderson: Thackery Binx, thou mangy feline; still alive?
Voice of Thackery Binx: And waiting for you!
Winifred Sanderson: Oh! Thou hast waited in vain. And thou will fail to save thy friends, just as thou failed to save thy sister!
[Screams and swoops down toward the cat]

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Connections

Referenced in Dead Teenagers (2007)

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Soundtracks

"I Put a Spell on You"
Written by Jay Hawkins
Performed by Bette Midler

User Reviews

A hilarious and exciting Halloween film

Hocus Pocus is one of those movies that I have enjoyed greatly for many years, even if it is a seasonal/holiday based film. This movie is just so fascinating to me for those fun aspects and qualities it contains that I could enjoy it on any watch. It has the right amount of funny that kept my eyes on the TV the whole time and my mouth wide open with laughter, and it seems many people forget that sometimes that's all we need from a movie to truly love and enjoy it.

With Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker being some of my favorite actresses, I decided that this was going to be a great Halloween flick to begin with, and it certainly turned out to be, for all the three witches put smiles on my faces, and even though this movie had some humorous features without the main three women casted in the film, they really were the most enjoyable and lovable of the film and most of the reason it is as enjoyable and lovable as it is, honestly. After watching this movie, Kathy Najimy actually turned out to be my favorite character though, because she was just plain out hilarious as her ditsy self, like when she flew on a vacuum.

All the Sanderson Sisters turned out to be funny and special in their own way, and like I said, Midler, Parker and Najimy's portrayal of them is really what makes this film for me, even though the story and other characters are just as entertaining and fun. Hocus Pocus is one of the movies that people just have to see at least once if they haven't, because after they see it they will want to watch it again and again, because it really is one of my favorite movies in general, and I hope more people will discover it and view it as greatly as I do. This movie is a magnificent, entertaining, really great and laughable adventure that will leave you in awe. I recommend it to everyone.