The Witches

This week we watched both versions of The Witches.  I had only seen bits and pieces of the 1990 version, so this was a great opportunity to catch up on a missed gem.  Long story short, I like the 2020 version much better than the 1990 version.

I'm already seeing reviewers tear into the 2020 version, calling it a bland remake of a classic, and comparing it to the 2005 Willy Wonka remake.  To such reviewers - 1990 was only 30 years ago, you freaking fetus.  The original movie isn't some timeless classic, it came out when I was in high school.  And it's dull.

The 1990 version has one thing going for it:  Jim Henson's puppetry.  The mice in that version are delightful, and much more charming than the CGI in the 2020 version.  I probably just have a soft spot for puppetry, though.  

The witches, though...  

To me, the 1990 version of the Grand High Witch just looked goofy.  Yes, it was great makeup at the time, and it still holds up.  But I don't find it scary, with the long rubbery nose and all.  Meanwhile, the Baraka-esque 2020 version is wonderfully nightmarish.  I'll admit the CGI looks a little cartoonish, but cartoony fits the tone of the film.  Both actresses do a great job hamming up the role, and while some viewers will find them annoying, that is the way the character was written in the original book.

Both movies have the same basic plot, and in both cases the thin plot feels stretched to fill a full-length movie.  Honestly, not a lot happens in the story.  The first act sets up the universe, then the movie really gets rolling when the witches have their meeting and turn the protagonist into a mouse, then it wraps up with the mouse-child using the witches' own potion against them.  The 1990 version had a Hollywoodized megahappy ending that pissed off author Roald Dahl, while the 2020's bittersweet ending is closer to that in the book.

But the main difference, the make-or-break difference between the two movies is the pacing.  I just find the 1990 version slow and boring.  The 2020 version, while pretty much showing the same events in the same order, manages to do so in a way that made me excited to see what happened next.

The only thing I didn't like about the 2020 version is the narration.  Chris Rock voices an older version of the main character, telling the story in retrospect.  While this narration sped up the movie's intro, beyond that the voiceovers felt like an unnecessary intrusion.  

Overall, I have to say that the 2020 version is a lot more fun.  But the younger set considers the 1990 version to be a cult classic, and I doubt the newer version is going to replace it any time soon.