Hocus Pocus 2

Its just a bunch of Hocus Pocus

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars

Hocus Pocus....what do I say about this new film, that obviously has ties to my childhood, a small place in my heart that remains in 1993, a film that is customary to watch every Halloween season, a film that remains in my top favorite Halloween movies that I love to watch every single year? How do I compare these two films? I don't. If you go into this movie hoping its exactly like the first then the film isn't for you.

Going into this film I wasn't sure what to expect and I knew if I didn't go into this with my mind open for the obvious changes that we were about to see, that if I didn't have my eyes open to the fact that the original cast, Max, Madison, and Danni weren't involved, that fact would kill any chance of me liking this Disney Plus exclusive.

The writer Jen D'Angelo actually did a decent job with the story, seeing how for the die hard fans of the original, it would be tough to please everyone. She makes the Sanderson sisters more relatable and gives us a reason to care for them, despite them hauling off children into the woods to eat so they can stay young forever. The movie shows what they went through as children right off the bat and at that point you're like, "I mean I guess the town had it coming to them."

Seeing Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy as their respective characters of Winifred, Mary and Sarah was great to see, who doesn't love some Nostalgia to hit you in the face?! Returning to characters that were thirty two years old isn't easy and I know the sequel has been wanted for a very long time and it didn't seem like it would ever be made, but here we are, and they did a fantastic job at getting back to the awesomeness that they created back in 1993.

This is a movie that gave us some insight into Winifred and shows that despite all her powers and what she wants in life, her sisters are more precious to her than her own life. This is also the beginning of a new tradition in Salem as in 2022 a new witch begins to get her powers on her 16th birthday under a full moon night during Halloween.

The acting was kind of campy and the story was ok, but at the same time it was fun and entertaining, and most importantly my two padawans loved it, they had smiles on their faces and that's what matters right? The fact that we can sit and enjoy a film without dissecting it? I was skeptical on how the movie would turn out, but it was decent. Not the best, not the worst, but it just doesn't touch the original. It did have some funny moments and heartbreaking ending, it also showed a new coven that will most likely take mantle of Witches of Salem, well, they're good witches, maybe to protect Salem from those powerful in the magic that would like to destroy their people and home.

Whitney Peak did a great job as the main character Becca, having controlling presence any time she got on screen. I'm curious if they continue with her story as an aspiring witch and begin to help her friends push into the witches ways.

As per Nostalgic reasons I wasn't head over heels in love with the song choices, but again, the first movie is a classic in my eyes, and classics very rarely can be duplicated again in the same franchise.

It was a cute movie that was decent with all things considered. The movie gets a 7 out of 10 from me, giving us yet another Halloween movie we will most likely watch every year.

The end credit scene also shows that they are open to bring back the Sanderson Sisters at least one more time, which makes sense, Disney loves their trilogies. So we might get a Sanderson Sisters verses Becca's coven in the next chapter. Maybe we'll even understand or get a backstory on the black cat that seemed to be helping the young witches out here and there.

So with that said.....I put a spell on you, take a shot and watch Hocus Pocus 2 on Disney Plus!

What did you think of HP2? Was it better than the original? Or did it not hit the mark of classic Halloween movie? Let me know in the comments below.

#HocusPocus2 #HocusPocus #DisneyPlus #TheWitchesareback #Halloween