escape to witch mountain ( 1975 film )
go on a family friendly adventure with escape to witch mountain 1975 and 1995 .
find out what ever happen to the 1975 movie, escape to witch mountain. no sound due to copyright .
to ask other readers questions about escape to witch mountain, please sign up .
escape to witch mountain - - (movie clip) your new ...
escape to witch mountain - - (movie clip) it' s ...
when
race to witch mountain
director andy fickman wanted to track down kim richards, the former child star who appeared in the original 1975 version
escape to witch mountain ,
he sought an unlikely ally: paris hilton .
alexander key, who wrote the 1968 novel escape to witch mountain, was an established and nationally ...
actors kim richards and ike eisenmann appear in at least four films together — this one, the original 1975 disney film escape to witch mountain, and the television film devil dog: the hound of hell. richards portrays the roadside waitress and eisenmann portrays the sheriff in a re - imagined remake of the original film, race to witch mountain, released in march 2009 .
very interesting reviews. i must admit, i expected you to give escape to witch mountain a higher review than return from witch mountain, but of course, i haven’t read the books .
we’d love your help. let us know what’s wrong with this preview of escape to witch mountain by alexander key .
escape to witch mountain was followed by several other films. the first was a direct sequel in 1978 ...
the original escape to witch mountain (1975) was based on the sci - fi novel by alexander key. the movie followed two mysterious orphan children who have extraordinary powers and are chased by a scheming millionaire with plans to exploit them. the film spawned one sequel (return from witch mountain in 1978), one spin - off tv movie (beyond witch mountain in 1982) and was remade for tv in 1995 .
tony (ike eisemannn) is using a harmonica to draw on a mirror when his sister tina (kim richards) discovers a map hidden in her secret case in disney' s escape to witch mountain, 1975. >
the remake includes remade roles for the former child stars of the 1975 original .
a made - for - television sequel called beyond witch mountain was made in 1982 .
plenty of gasping as tony (ike eisenmann) flashes some magical powers for the kids at the children' s home, worrying his sister tia (kim richards) in disney' s escape to witch mountain, 1975. >
escape to witch mountain (1968) is a young adult novel written by american science fiction writer alexander key. the novel was adapted for the movie by screenwriter robert m. young. a sequel, return from witch mountain (1978), was released in 1978. it was followed by a made - for - tv sequel, beyond witch mountain (1982), in 1982. a tv remake of escape to witch mountain (1995) was released in 1995, and another remake, race to witch mountain (2009), is planned for release in 2009 .
mr. bolt (ray milland) and his aide deranian (donald pleasence) hide their evil intentions as they show tia (kim richards) and tony (ike eisenmann) their new digs in disney' s escape to witch mountain, 1975. >
new arrivals tony (ike eisenmann) and tia (kim richards) deal with a bully (dermott downs) and the powerful mrs. grindley (reta shaw) on their first day at the children' s home in escape to witch mountain, 1975 .
when a movie based on a book is remade, it' s more acceptable to me when the remake tries to be even closer to the source material. if it strays even further away, it makes me wonder why they bothered in the first place. why make an escape to witch mountain that doesn' t stay true to the ideas of escape to witch mountain ?
new arrivals tony (ike eisenmann) and tia (kim richards) deal with a bully (dermott downs) and the powerful mrs. grindley (reta shaw) on their first day at the children' s home in escape to witch mountain, 1975. >
race to witch mountain is a 2009 remake of the 1975 disney film escape to witch mountain. starring dwayne “the rock” johnson, annasophia robb, and alexander ludwig, the film takes place near searchlight, nevada. johnson plays jack bruno, a las vegas taxi cab driver who ends up picking up two siblings who offer him $ 15, 000 to drive them to their destination. jack soon discovers that the siblings have paranormal powers and he must help protect them from an organization that wants to use the teens for their nefarious plans .
but before we get into them, let' s talk about the basis for the films... alexander key' s wonderful novel, escape to witch mountain .
ets everywhere, phone home now and spread the word that race to witch mountain is perfect fantasy for all the family! dwayne johnson (the rock of old) and carla gugino take the leads in this zesty remake of the 1975 disney classic, escape to witch mountain. johnson is a las vegas cabbie who unwittingly picks up two kids who turn out to be extra - terrestrials on a mission to earth, and now looking to get home .
the gun moment also reminded me of a very similar scene that was in the first x - men movie twenty - five years later. magneto must have seen escape to witch mountain .
fickman did not describe the film as a remake, defining his production as
a new chapter within the world of witch mountain
. the director also described the book, in which the films are based as
a very cool dark thriller
and anticipated drawing elements from it that did not exist in the 1975 film. by march 2008, filmmakers were using a new script written by mark bomback. the film was re - titled race to witch mountain, and it began filming in los angeles in the same month. the convention center in pomona, california was converted into the film' s ufo expo 9, and the interior of witch mountain was designed using photographs from a tour of norad' s cheyenne mountain. a cabin for the story was also built in agua dulce, california .
an american science fiction writer, most of whose books were aimed at a juvenile audience. he became a nationally known illustrator before he became an author. after he began writing novels for young people, he moved his family to the north carolina mountains, and most of his books include that wild and rugged landscape. his novel escape to witch mountain was made into a popular film in 1975 and ag
alexander h. key wrote many novels over a span of several decades, but none other reached the level of success that his 1968 novel escape to witch mountain did. with that book, key crafted a story that enticed disney to purchase the film rights to it and attempt to build a franchise out of it .
in july 2007, walt disney pictures hired andy fickman to direct witch mountain, a
modern re - imagining
of escape to witch mountain, using a script by matt lopez. the following august, dwayne johnson (most notably famous for portraying the rock in the wwe) was cast into a lead role, with filming scheduled to begin in march 2008 .
escape to witch mountain is no great shakes, but the kids are likable and albert is entertaining. it’s pleasant enough, but underwhelming, and curiously lacking in wonder, even in the high - flying finale .
hough also made a movie in 1970 that sounds like a thriller version of the escape to witch mountain concept. it' s called sudden terror and is about a young brother and sister going on the run with their grandfather after witnessing an assassination. i haven' t seen it, but after watching witch mountain i' m wanting to check it out .
reviews for race to witch mountain have been mixed. based on 74 reviews collected by rotten tomatoes, the film has a 42% rating from critics, with an average score of 5. 1 / 10. on metacritic, the film has received an average score of 50, based on 23 reviews .
two remakes were made, a first one in 1995 under the same title and a second in 2009 called race to witch mountain and starring dwayne johnson .
nostalgia is definitely back. not content with remakes of old 70s television programmes (the brady bunch) and cartoon characters (anything from the incredible hulk to spiderman), walt disney studios is to remake the classic children' s movie escape to witch mountain .
the remake comparison project - terror, horror, death. film at 11 .
tony and tia must escape from mr. bolt' s compound and travel to witch mountain in an attempt to find out where they came from. along the way they enlist the help of an old drifter to conceal them as mr. bolt uses his influence to track them down .
the success of the film, which starred hollywood veterans ray milland and eddie albert, led to a 1978 sequel return from witch mountain (which starred bette davis). the original has already been remade once, for us television in 1995 .
i always thought that the
kid' s horror movie
vibe i got from escape to witch mountain was due to watching it at a very young age, but revisiting it as an adult and knowing more about hough' s background brings perfect sense to the feeling .
bruno seems to be an axe - wielding maniac, but the kids are able to get through to him and befriend him. he agrees to drive them to witch mountain, and along the way they stop to help a stranded motorist. zoe .
beary friendly: the kids use a bear to help them escape from bolt' s henchmen .
it should be clear by now that this isn' t your daddy' s witch mountain, a point the rock and fickman both drove home .
the sequel to disney' s 1975 smash escape to witch mountain sees alien siblings tony and tia (ike eisenmann and kim richards) return to earth and straight into another adventure. their supernatural powers come into play from the moment they land as they uncover a mind control plot led by villainous professor victor (christopher lee) and his nasty benefactor letha (bette davis). outlandish fun for the kids with performances to match from the veterans .
to discuss this film and other cats in movies and on television, join us on facebook and twitter .
the film ends with zoe looking directly into the camera to implore viewers, especially outsiders, not to be afraid to let in the light .
while we chatted, i did what i always do in these situations—i looked for the soundtrack. much to my dismay, i couldn’t find it. nor could i find very many releases of johnny mandel’s work in general. digging deeper, i was saddened to learn that the only released version of any music from escape to witch mountain was on an obscure disneyland records illustrated storybook lp narrated by eddie albert (who plays jason o’day). this news was particularly shocking since escape to witch mountain was—at the time—one of disney’s most successful live action films .
a book would later be written by alexander key that followed or went with the film .
the original film, released in 1975, was an adaptation of alexander key' s sci - fi book. it featured a young, orphaned, brother and sister who have to battle against a power - hungry tycoon, aristotle bolt, who wants to use their magic powers .
escape to witch mountain has always been among my favorite disney live - action films, so when i saw this book at my local library, i had to give it a try. i expected to like it, but i ended up simply adoring it. it' s without a question one of the best books i' ve ever read; the plot is simple but not simplistic and the element of suspense was terrific. most of all, escape to witch mountain touches on deep themes such as sense of belonging, hating people without justification, and even stewardship
one of the most popular disney films of its era, escape to witch mountain only loosely follows alexander key’s comparatively dark original tale about a pair of troubled orphans escaping a grim juvenile - hall orphanage and a sinister pursuer with the help of a heroic catholic priest .
at the end of the film the children ask o’day to keep winkie for them. winkie meows her approval .
jack soo (mr .
yoyo
yokomoto) was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in the autumn of 1978, several months after the film' s release. return from witch mountain would be his final movie appearance, as he died the following january .
caught in a world where they don' t belong... they have one chance to escape !
despite the mixed outcome, the film turned out to be a box office hit. it became the first disney film in 2009 to open at # 1, grossing $ 24. 4 million. the film would go on to gross over $ 67 million domestically, and over $ 39 million overseas, for a total of $ 106 million .
newcomer adam kukalow has been commissioned to write the screenplay for the new film, which is said to remain faithful to the original but to have more of a modern bite .
witch hunt: some of the posse of backwoods hunters think the children are witches .
kim richards and ike eisenmann, who portrayed tia and tony in the original witch mountain films of the 1970s, made cameo appearances in race to witch mountain. richards appears as a roadhouse waitress (named
tina ,
a minor change from the character [ tia ] she played in the 1975 and 1978 films) and eisenmann appears as sheriff anthony. in addition, meredith salenger, the star of disney' s 1985 adventure the journey of natty gann has a cameo as a tv reporter named
natalie gann .
another plotline begins develop with a news broadcast about the long - neglected witch mountain park, which wealthy local businessman edward bolt (robert vaughn) has offered to buy and rejuvenate. this comes as terrible news to waldo fudd (vincent schiavelli), owner of witch mountain business the purple general store, because the mountain' s geo - cosmic harmonics cannot be tampered with. it' s important to
the twins
, it will soon reach
the return threshold
and
now is the time to come home to light
.
i was beginning to lose hope that i could show my colleagues this wonderful music from my childhood without lugging in my parents’ vcr. i loved escape to witch mountain so much that i learned tony’s melodic riffs by ear during my brief stint taking harmonica lessons. it is, to this day, some of my favorite movie music .
tia and tony are two orphaned youngsters with extraordinary powers. lucas deranian poses as their uncle in order to get the kids into the clutches of deranian' s megalomanical boss, evil millionaire aristotle bolt, who wants to exploit them. jason, a cynical widower, helps tia and tony
escape to witch mountain ,
while at the same time tia and tony help jason escape the pain of the loss of his wife .
more importantly, the themes of escape to witch mountain - - feeling isolated and alone and like an outcast because you' re
different
- - have reverberated through kid - friendly (and even adult - friendly) films for decades since. from e. t. to the goonies to divergent, the movies have featured scores of kids who struggle to fit in and end up realizing that it' s more important to be your best, true self. escape to witch mountain did not originate that theme by any means, but its heart is in the right place and it perhaps came at just the right time to point the way for future films that have become classics in their own right .
if you' ve watched the 1975 escape, you' ve already seen the best take on this material. if you' ve only seen the' 95 version, check out the' 75 one and it might blow you away, it' s so much better .
at first it seems that xander and danny are going to be romantic rivals, each vying for the hand of anna while xander intimidates danny both physically and, with scary stories about witch mountain, mentally .
tia and tony are two orphaned youngsters with extraordinary powers. lucas deranian poses as their uncle in order to get the kids into the clutches of deranian' s megalomanical boss, evil millionaire aristotle bolt, who wants to exploit them. jason, a cynical widower, helps tia and tony
escape to witch mountain ,
while at the same time tia and tony help jason escape the pain of the loss of his wife. written by adam chotiner
i expect “i cain’t say no” to go right over their heads. maybe at some point, when they are much much older, we can use it as a jumping off point to discuss the sexual double standard that once forced women to suppress their burning desire to kiss cowhands. anyway, please vote for oklahoma! otherwise, i may have to escape from witch mountain. on my broom .
i know that i saw the disney film when it came out in theaters - - probably 1975 or 1976, although i had the impression it was 10 - 15 years earlier - - but i could not recall the details. after reading the book, however, it seems the film was only loosely adapted from the original, with the protagonists' names unchanged. i wonder, if i watched the film again, whether i would enjoy it as much as the book. (probably not. )
when anna drops her ice cream cone, she uses her powers to reverse the drop, tipping fudd off to the fact that these are the twins he' s been waiting for. he tells the kids to meet him on witch mountain at sunset .
parents need to know that this family - friendly film has some mildy scary / tense scenes that may frighten sensitive or younger kids .
the wonderfully pristine print allows the film to be seen with the utmost clarity. the video quality is satisfyingly clean, and the film' s often soft and dark look is conveyed as it would have been nearly thirty years ago in theaters .
chekhov' s gun: during their escape, thunderhead and the gate guard' s cat allergies. winky the cat disables the guard by his very presence, and tia calls on thunderhead the horse to be their means of escape .
escape to witch mountain is a very special movie to me. so many memories and good times are directly linked to it in my head. i don' t watch it as often as i did, or should, but every time i do, the nostalgic feeling of remembering a time when things were simpler and better takes over. it' s a treat .
aas it turns out, bolt' s interest in the children isn' t noble after all - uranium has been found in witch mountain, and he wants to use danny and anna' s powers to mine it without trucks and dynamite .
some of us at murfie hq were sitting around one afternoon, discussing the music of old movies we loved as kids. films like mary poppins, the sound of music and chitty chitty bang bang were brought up, of course. i immediately thought of escape to witch mountain, and we started reminiscing about the utterly creepy theme by johnny mandel that opens the film, with protagonists tia and tony running in silhouette from viciously barking dogs .
i had never thought about that before, mainly because most of my viewings of escape to witch mountain took place during my childhood, but it is a little weird, though they do make it very clear that tia is the one who has complete control of her powers. seems to me like tony was still somewhat trying to get a hold on things at that point .
despite the fact that escape to witch mountain came out eight years before i was even born, and even though i have older siblings who almost certainly watched it as some point, somehow i managed to make it through childhood without ever seeing the movie. i knew it existed, i would hear about it here and there over the years, but never watched it. my first ever viewing of this film came at the age of 32, when priscilla showed it to me on dvd .
if you’re at all interested in this classic movie or johnny mandel ‘s incredible scoring, grab a copy as soon as possible! escape to witch mountain is part of intrada’s special collection, which is made up of exclusive, limited edition releases. this soundtrack was a long time coming, and you may not have a very big window to get it .
families can talk about the film' s themes of family, and knowing where you really belong in the world .
this fast - paced disney endeavor stars kim richards and ike eisenmann as two adolescents with acute psychic powers. the kids are actually space aliens, but suffer from amnesia and are unaware of their origins. pursued by greedy business - mogul ray milland, who wants to harness their special powers for his benefit, kim and ike are rescued by likeable camper eddie albert. he and the kids escape to the mountain of the title when albert' s rv suddenly acquires the power of flight. in 1978, the film spawned the sequel return from witch mountain. ~ hal erickson, rovi
purdy' s experience leaves him convinced that the kids are evil beings from a place called witch mountain, and with this claim he' s able to stir up a posse of gun - toting locals to aid in the search for these little witches .
i have wondered whether or not the movie would work for someone who didn' t grow up watching it, or even watched it at all as a kid. i' m glad to see that it got a positive reaction from cody. not that i' m surprised, escape to witch mountain is very interesting, and all of its elements work perfectly together .
it' s no flying motor home, but it' s certainly the most impressive display of powers in this film .
donald pleasence is known for his many horror and sci - fi film and tv appearances. he played blofeld ...
steven spielberg was evidently much on the mind of the writer - director jeff nicholls, whose new film harks back to the senior filmmaker’s golden age .
when i was a kid, the movie escape to witch mountain, and its sequel, return from witch mountain, was on television all the time. i remember watching it with my brother endlessly, and recently i bought the dvd. i had never realized it was based on a book. opening this up was like settling into my grandmother' s recliner with this and tom corbett, space cadet novels. (i was quite well - read as a child, thanks to my grandpa' s old stash .) it has all the feel of that type of novel, especially since my
but then the magic happened. a bit further down the search results, i stumbled upon a recent post on the intrada forums. if that name sounds familiar, it’s because they’ve released literally hundreds of film and video game soundtracks, both new and old. imagine my surprise when, upon reading the post, i learned that not only was intrada releasing the escape to witch mountain soundtrack, but it was out that very day! that’s right—40 years after the film’s release, on a day that i just happened to be wishing for a soundtrack, intrada was delivering with their full, limited edition special collection volume 309 release .
the remake is narrated by zoe moon (perrey reeves), a young woman who has lived in the shadow of witch mountain - a magical, supposedly haunted location that some fear and others worship - all her life. the story begins with her working as a waitress at the witch mountain cafe, where she is used to seeing strange things because all sorts of people travel to witch mountain to visit the powerful rock. it has a unique magnetic field that attracts psychics and people with paranormal abilities. but nothing zoe has seen before has been as strange as the sight of two abandoned toddlers, a boy and a girl, surrounded by an otherworldy purple light. and she can' t even hear that they' re attempting to communicate telepathically .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans. it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
while escape to witch mountain probably isn' t a movie i' ll be revisiting on a regular basis, it is definitely a very good kids' movie. i liked it a lot, and am glad i finally saw it. i can see why it still gets referenced and has a fan base more than forty years after it was first released .
but in this version there' s another force that the film' s heroes will have to reckon with, a vicious alien monster called the siphon .
every now and then cody and i like to do something different. we' ve ventured outside of the horror world a few times before, but this is the first time we share our thoughts on children' s movies. though the original escape to witch mountain has some obvious suspense and horror elements. this is also kind of a special one due to the very different experiences both of us had with the movies .
race to witch mountain was released on dvd and blu - ray august 4, 2009 in three different sets; first, a single disc containing a wide - screen version of the film with no bonus features; second, a deluxe - edition that contains deleted scenes as well as other bonus features and a digital copy; third, a blu - ray release with the same extras as the deluxe edition, along with a dvd copy of the film and a digital copy in the blu - ray format .
why it' s significant: one could argue that this kid - friendly sci - fi adventure, based on a novel by alexander key, was one of the few bright spots that possibly saved the disney movie studio during the' 70s. the company' s animated fare had largely dried up, and it was relying more and more on reissued classics and a few live - action comedies. escape to witch mountain was a different type of film for the studio and enough of a hit to keep the disney brand in the game .
if you haven' t seen either one, i' d seriously recommend that you watch the original and skip the remake. i don' t feel like i gained anything from my viewing of escape to witch mountain' 95. the story is weird, acting isn' t the best, nothing works quite right. it really wasn' t a pleasant experience for me .
the film
section houses, as you would have guessed it, the film. you can view the film with audio commentary from iake eissinmann, kim richards and director john hough, if you so desire. before the film, there is the 8 - minute short ,
pluto' s dream house
, a rather entertaining comic piece in which mickey and pluto discover a magic lamp while digging in the yard... or do they? the sneak peeks that play at the start of the disc are for
johnny mandel—who is perhaps best known for “suicide is painless” from m * a * s * h —was absolutely ahead of his time with escape to witch mountain. mandel’s deceptively simple themes were performed with a massive 50 - odd - member orchestra, but with the addition of harmonica and eerie drones from the moog synthesizer. the outcome feels like an alien adaptation of 1970s disney fanfares. playful tunes like “the flying camper” would be equally at home in any disney film from the era, but mandel’s biggest successes come when he subverts those expectations. there are ideas continually introduced throughout the film’s score which are later echoed via synthesizers that sound equally otherworldly 40 years later .
some terrifying experience has blocked tony and tia' s memory of the past. but because they have supernatural powers, they are sure that they come from another world - - and that their people still exist somewhere. then tony and tia find that they must escape from men who want to use their special powers for evil. they begin a desperate search to find their true home - - which leads them to the strange and mysterious witch mountain .
disney has produced several tv movie remakes over the years, but for the 1994 -' 95 television season they made four remakes back - to - back (to - back - to - back) to be aired on their subsidiary network abc. while the only one of these remakes you tend to hear referenced outside of the' 90s is the computer wore tennis shoes, and that' s simply because it starred kirk cameron, the other films that were part of this endeavor were the shaggy dog, freaky friday (the tv version starred shelley long and gaby hoffman), and a remake of escape to witch mountain. this take on witch mountain was written and directed by peter rader, who definitely did not just do the' 75 movie all over again .
good news: walt disney pictures is remaking escape to witch mountain. bad news: they are letting the guy who made she’s the man and the game plan (which almost seems to us like mr. nanny with the rock instead of hulk hogan) and a 2003 direct to video movie titled who’s your dady? direct it. on the other hand, andy fickman did made reefer madness: the movie musical, a nice little musical comedy which i caught at the 2005 sundance film festival and was shortly after dumped on showtime (kristen bell and neve campbell star). so fickman is capable of making a good film. but what are the chances that matt lopez (the wild) has provided good source material .
as their journey with o' day continues, the kids remember more and more. before the wreck at sea with uncle bene, they were traveling not from another country but from another planet entirely. a planet that doesn' t exist anymore. the planet was dying and its inhabitants had to escape to earth. their destination was witch mountain, and reports confirm that a group of people did settle there a while back and they keep to themselves .
, he had never scored a fantasy or science fiction film and certainly never a disney production. mandel scored the film for an orchestra of around 50 players, including paul beaver on synthesizer and harmonica player tommy morgan lending his talents both for source effects and musical lines and effects .
guest contributors are welcome. if you' re a film lover who' s interested in writing an article about one of your favorites, feel free to contact us at
copyright © 2005 - 2018 / film. privacy policy / cookie policy. web design by pro blog design. logo concept by: illumination ink
bolt sends deranian and a thug, ubermann, after the children. tia and tony hide out in a winnebago motor home owned by a crotchety widower named jason o' day (eddie albert). initially negative towards the children, jason gradually begins to recognize their powers and the truth of their story; tia' s vague memories of a disaster at sea intrigue him. he agrees to take the children on the route indicated by tia' s star case, which leads them to a mountain known as witch mountain, home to unexplainable phenomena. avoiding bolt, the law and an incited mob convinced the children are witches, they eventually make their way up witch mountain, pursued by deranian and ubermann as well as bolt in a helicopter .
because where there’s a will, there’s a segway, kevin james will be returning to theaters approximately five years too late for the sequel to 2009′s small town security - based comedy paul blart: mall cop. the first film was a surprise hit, raking in $ 146 million, and james and his writing partner nick bakay are hoping to strike gold again with another installment of the tale that follows mild - mannered mall security guard blart as he transforms into a hero to save a group of hostages from an in - mall bank heist and win the love of a kiosk clerk played by jayma mays. andy flickman (parental guidance, you again, the escape to witch mountain remake) is in talks to direct the sequel, which doesn’t have a synopsis yet. but if you care to recall the the ending to the first film, blart (it rhymes with fart) frees the hostages from the mall, then
beyond that, you can see the influence of escape to witch mountain - - which looks dated but still charming by today' s standards in terms of its visuals - - in later films by no less a filmmaker than steven spielberg. certain shots are echoed in jurassic park and e. t. : the extraterrestrial - - the latter most notably in the bicycle chase scene, which climaxes in a similar way to the winnebago chase in this movie .
years before
the real housewives of beverly hills ,
the feuds, the cheating allegations and the drama, kyle richards was a child star and a gorgeous blond bombshell with hair for miles. the california native always wanted to stand out and scored her first part in the disney film
escape to witch mountain
when she was just 4 years old. our friends at snakkle sent over these adorable photos of young richards, now 44, as a fresh - faced beauty. take a look: 1980: 1990: 2013: for more photos of bravo tv stars before they were famous, heads over to snakkle. com .
on a quest to find out what happened to his missing brother, a scientist, his nephew and their mountain guide discover a fantastic and dangerous lost world in the center of the earth .
the director sought assistance from ufo experts, the military, and cia advisers to shape the elements of the film. he also introduced a new element in the remake, an extraterrestrial creature called siphon. the creature was conceived by the design team who created the looks for alien and predator in the film alien vs. predator .
escape to witch mountain' 95 might be a harmlessly mediocre kids' movie on its own merits, but it pales in comparison to the first movie. this movie doesn' t provide the sort of fun the original did, it doesn' t have the sense of adventure and you don' t connect with the characters in the same way. it has a very odd, somewhat off - putting atmosphere which is enhanced by how low rent it all is .
the soundtrack is relatively soft and low - key, but effective. the dolby digital 5. 1 track makes use of the surrounds primarily for the film' s score. dialogue and effects mostly stick to the front speakers, and they are mostly clear. the spaceship appearances late in the film make good use of that subwoofer .
2017 - 04 - 13t12: 56: 28 - 07: 00kim richards dated donald trump? kim richards could have traded 90210 for 1600 pennsylvania ave. a preview of next week' s
the real housewives of beverly hills
reunion special shows the actress revealing she once dated donald trump. “one thing i have to ask you before we get onto everything that happened this season. i heard a rumor you once dated donald trump, ” host andy cohen asked richards. “is that true? ” read the rest of this article at page six. kim richards got started as an actress in the tv series nanny and the professor and is well known for her role in the 1975 fantasy movie escape to witch mountain .
not only has intrada teamed up with disney to make this soundtrack finally available, but they’ve done so with more detail than could have been anticipated. the main themes are here, but so are all of the film’s musical cues and then some. for their limited cd release of the soundtrack, intrada (with producer douglass fake) have put together just about everything they could salvage from disney’s long - term storage tapes ca. 1975 .
it is also apparent that some transfers are a bit cleaner than others. in a few more intimate moments, you can hear some tape hiss. additionally, some of the harder pans in the mix were annoying to me personally. i’ve always had an issue with instruments fully panned to one ear or the other, but i understand it doesn’t bother everyone. a lot of early stereo recordings were bigger offenders than this score, and it is not that much of a problem on escape to witch mountain .
escape to witch mountain has always been among my favorite disney live - action films, so when i saw this book at my local library, i had to give it a try. i expected to like it, but i ended up simply adoring it. it' s without a question one of the best books i' ve ever read; the plot is simple but not simplistic and the element of suspense was terrific. most of all, escape to witch mountain touches on deep themes such as sense of belonging, hating people without justification, and even stewardship of the planet. its profound questions will haunt you long after the book' s end. as you can already tell, i highly recommend this book. read it as soon as you get the chance! side note: if you' ve watched the movie, there are some major differences. but unlike other instances when i' ve both read a book and watched the film adaptation, i don' t necessarily hate the differences. yes, i prefer the book, but the movie keeps the mood intact; i appreciate both .
andy fickman (
escape to witch mountain ,
parental guidance
) is in talks to direct a sequel to
paul blart: mall cop
at sony pictures. fickman replaces steve carr who helmed the original 2009 comedy which became a surprise major hit with a $ 146 million domestic gross. kevin james is set to return as the security guard at a new jersey mall. james and nick bakay, who co - wrote the original, are back to work in the script. james, todd garner and adam sandler are returning as producers. filming aims to begin in april. source: thr
it is my theory that children love nothing more than seeing movies about children with supernatural powers, so even though my selection this week may be a tad dated, i can’t help but feel dale and violet will still dig seeing another brother and sister duo, this one with the awesome jedi - like abilities. i should say that the memory lines are a bit blurred between this 1970s disney sci - fi family film and its sequel, return from witch mountain, but i recall being generally down with the entire 1970s witch franchise. (i can’t speak to the 1980s or 1990s remakes .) .
after learning that author alexander key had been inspired by the
brown mountain lights
phenomenon (a true unsolved mystery in my backyard here in the blue ridge mountains) to create the witch mountain of the title, i knew i had to read this classic work of juvenile science fiction. i' m glad i did. orphaned tony and tia know their abilities (such as telekinesis and communicating witho animals) make them special, and they know the man falsely claiming to be their uncle has evil intentions toward
although the purple guy' s real name, waldo fudd, has never been mentioned in the film, on the cast he is credited as waldo fudd .
offspring song
stuff is messed up
and future world music song
heart of fury
were used in promos for the movie. the score to race to witch mountain was composed by trevor rabin, who recorded his score with a 78 - piece ensemble of the hollywood studio symphony and a 24 - person choir at the sony scoring stage. two of the songs in the film were written and performed by country and western band brokedown cadillac, which appears briefly in an opening scene. the film also features the hit single
fly on the wall
by miley cyrus and
emergency
by hollywood records artist steve rushton, featured on the soundtrack .
if fickman has his way, the film will be accessible, but bold .
we want this to be a movie that anybody can go and see and have a great time ,
he says .
but i wanted to feel edgy, too. it' s dark and creepy. i went back and read the original alexander key book, escape to witch mountain, and it' s a very heavy sci - fi novel. it' s all about questioning authority, hiding in plain sight, and you don' t know who to trust. i loved it. i respect what they did in' 75 at disney - - they had a coat rack attacking people - - here we just wanted to make it more intense .
when i was a kid, the movie escape to witch mountain, and its sequel, return from witch mountain, was on television all the time. i remember watching it with my brother endlessly, and recently i bought the dvd. i had never realized it was based on a book. opening this up was like settling into my grandmother' s recliner with this and tom corbett, space cadet novels. (i was quite well - read as a child, thanks to my grandpa' s old stash .) it has all the feel of that type of novel, especially since my copy, through inter - library loan, was quite old. this little book is completely fascinating and not at all condescending to its audience. it' s straightforward, not cutesy and admirably not campy. it' s a great complement to the movie .
i like alexander key if only because he wrote the incredible tide which inspired one of the greatest animes of all time and a childhood favorite that occupied my day dreams and every little game i played. but just like with the incredible tide, escape to witch mountain has so much potential that it didn' t live up to. the story overall is interesting but for me it failed to deliver. the pace was fast which was good because if it was slower it would' ve become boring very quickly. that being said, t
the first movie clearly establishes that tia, the more powerful of the siblings, is the only one who can use telepathy—she projects her thoughts to tony but he has to talk back with his mouth. in this film, both kids talk to each other telepathically .
having come to earth because their own planet was dying, survivors of the journey made their way to witch mountain and formed a community to await the surviving children, each pair in possession of a star case to help them find their way to their new home. tony and tia are the first to reach their destination. the children are reunited with their uncle bené and board another spacecraft. when bolt and the others leave in defeat, jason witnesses the ship' s return as it flies over him to say a final goodbye .
my first crush was on kim richards. she had long blond hair. it was 90 feet long ,
the director recalled. and as he geared up to make his own version of the mythology - - which stars dwayne johnson and opened friday, bringing in an estimated $ 25 million over the weekend - - he also wanted to find iake eissinmann, who played richards' brother tony in the first film and in
return from witch mountain ,
the 1978 sequel .
no one was cooler than iake .
released in 1975, the film version of key' s story was scripted by robert m. young, who had more than a decade of primarily television work to his name at that point, and directed by john hough, who was coming straight off the success of the 1973 horror classic the legend of hell house and the 1974 car chase movie dirty mary, crazy larry. hough did have some kids' movie experience as well, having worked on robin hood and treasure island projects .
the
1975 disney studio album
feature highlights the studio' s various productions from the year that escape was released. the 3 1 / 2 minute montage can also be found on the apple dumpling gang special edition dvd. finally, there are the galleries, which contain production stills, cast biographies for six cast members and the director, and advertising separated into lobby cards, posters, comic book, and merchandise. no theatrical trailers are anywhere to be found here, unfortunately .
in escape to witch mountain, twins tony and tia are taken to an orphanage. they have no family, just their cat winky, but they do have extraordinary powers. the can communicate telepathically, can move objects, and tia communicates with animals. it goes without saying that some people want to exploit them, and before long they are in the clutches of wealthy mr. bolt (ray milland), who plans to use their powers to make more money. but tony and tia see through him and escape, searching for the real home that they have only seen in foggy and incomplete memories. they are helped along the way by jason (eddie albert), a crusty old loner who they completely win over. the children use their powers to help them get away, with results that are sometimes funny and sometimes mildly scary.
escape to witch mountain is a 1975 american fantasy-children 's film , adapted from the science fiction novel written by alexander h. key in 1968 . the film was produced by walt disney productions , released in march 1975 by buena vista distribution company and directed by john hough . escape to witch mountain is the first film in the franchise of the ' witch mountain ' films . the second and sequel film , return from witch mountain , recast the child lead actors ike eisenmann as tony , and kim richards , as tia . in september 1978 , return from witch mountain was released to theaters on a double bill with escape to witch mountain ( 1975 ) . in 1982 , beyond witch mountain was produced as a television movie and broadcast on cbs through walt disney . in 1995 , escape to witch mountain was produced as a remake television movie , released as part of the wonderful world of disney . a reworked feature film , race to witch mountain , with a new telling , directed by andy fickman was theatrically released in march 2009 . 
escape to witch mountain is a 1975 american fantasy-children's film, adapted from the science fiction novel written by alexander h. key in 1968. the film was produced by walt disney productions, released in march 1975 by buena vista distribution company and directed by john hough. escape to witch mountain is the first film in the franchise of the' witch mountain' films. the second and sequel film, return from witch mountain, recast the child lead actors ike eisenmann as tony, and kim richards, as tia. in september 1978, return from witch mountain was released to theaters on a double bill with escape to witch mountain (1975). in 1982, beyond witch mountain was produced as a television movie and broadcast on cbs through walt disney. in 1995, escape to witch mountain was produced as a remake television movie, released as part of the wonderful world of disney. a reworked feature film, race to witch mountain, with a new telling, directed by andy fickman was theatrically released in march 2009.
escape to witch mountain is a 1975 american fantasy-children's film, adapted from the science fiction novel written by alexander h. key in 1968. the film was produced by walt disney productions, released in march 1975 by buena vista distribution company and directed by john hough. escape to witch mountain is the first film in the franchise of the' witch mountain' films. the second and sequel film, return from witch mountain, recast the child lead actors ike eisenmann as tony, and kim richards, as tia. in september 1978, return from witch mountain was released to theaters on a double bill with escape to witch mountain (1975). in 1982, beyond witch mountain was produced as a television movie and broadcast on cbs through walt disney. in 1995, escape to witch mountain was produced as a remake television movie, released as part of the wonderful world of disney. a reworked feature film, race to witch mountain, with a new telling, directed by andy fickman was theatrically released in march 2009.