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-Amy 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

Strangely, the film was released in the Summer of 1993, rather than in the Fall.

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Goofs

When Max and Dani go into Allison's house to trick-or-treat, as the conversation carries on, Allison gives Dani a large witch-shaped sucker. A few lines later, the witch sucker she holds changes to a much smaller, differently shaped sucker.

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Quotes

[repeated line, usually when Max is about to do something bold but dumb]
Dani: [gasping] Max, no!

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Connections

References Halloween (1978)

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Soundtracks

"I Put a Spell on You"
Written by Jay Hawkins
Performed by Joe Malone

User Reviews

**** out of ****

I don't what the critics were talking about, but I found Hocus Pocus to be extreme fun, from start to finish. The use of color and the sets is all magical, giving the movie a strange fairy-tale feel. I also found it to be very funny with great special-effects. The movie's just plain fun. The three witches, thankfully, aren't flat and dull. This movie is scary without being profane (ala Mighty Joe Young) or super duper frightening. A great film that's much better than most Disney live-action films today.