I wish I could say that I was surprised by HOCUS POCUS 2, but I wasn't. It's absolutely what you'd expect with a Disney+ reboot. It was relatively uninspired.
The plot was hardly original. It's almost like we've never seen a movie where a witch/wizard/warlock came back from beyond the grave to get revenge. It's nothing like Halloweentown. Or Spookybuddies. Or the original Hocus Pocus.
The plot was mediocre and bland, but the casting was far from that. I'm a huge fan of the HBO series VEEP, so getting to see Tony Hale (Jefry Traske) and Sam Richardson (Gilbert) appear in another project together was wonderful. The new heroes Whitney Peak (Becca) and Belissa Escobedo were well cast and knew what roles they were supposed to play. Where they brought some sweet moments to the film with some good acting, they did conform to the Disney model. Of course, we can't neglect the original trio comprised of Bette Middler (Winnifred,) Sarah Jessica Parker (Sarah,) and Kathy Najiamy (Mary) who brought their A-game to their performance. It was a blast to watch.
The film had a disappointing amount of product placement which distracted from the tone of the film because it had to be interacted with. One scene took place inside a Walgreens, but the trio of witches spent 30+ seconds trying to go through the automatic doors. Another featured an Apple HomePod, and the witches were frightened of Siri. It was amusing, but it distracted me from the tone of the film and besmirched the film as a whole.
On the whole, HOCUS POCUS 2 wasn't bad. It was entertaining and good use of my evening. However, it wasn't anything new or surprising. 7/10.
Review by JacobBlockedParent2022-10-03T03:37:01Z
I wish I could say that I was surprised by HOCUS POCUS 2, but I wasn't. It's absolutely what you'd expect with a Disney+ reboot. It was relatively uninspired.
The plot was hardly original. It's almost like we've never seen a movie where a witch/wizard/warlock came back from beyond the grave to get revenge. It's nothing like Halloweentown. Or Spookybuddies. Or the original Hocus Pocus.
The plot was mediocre and bland, but the casting was far from that. I'm a huge fan of the HBO series VEEP, so getting to see Tony Hale (Jefry Traske) and Sam Richardson (Gilbert) appear in another project together was wonderful. The new heroes Whitney Peak (Becca) and Belissa Escobedo were well cast and knew what roles they were supposed to play. Where they brought some sweet moments to the film with some good acting, they did conform to the Disney model. Of course, we can't neglect the original trio comprised of Bette Middler (Winnifred,) Sarah Jessica Parker (Sarah,) and Kathy Najiamy (Mary) who brought their A-game to their performance. It was a blast to watch.
The film had a disappointing amount of product placement which distracted from the tone of the film because it had to be interacted with. One scene took place inside a Walgreens, but the trio of witches spent 30+ seconds trying to go through the automatic doors. Another featured an Apple HomePod, and the witches were frightened of Siri. It was amusing, but it distracted me from the tone of the film and besmirched the film as a whole.
On the whole, HOCUS POCUS 2 wasn't bad. It was entertaining and good use of my evening. However, it wasn't anything new or surprising. 7/10.