Hocus Pocus 2 Review

When you wish upon a black candle, sometimes you don’t get exactly what you wish for. The original Hocus Pocus has been one of my, and my wife’s, go-to Halloween films every year for decades. Hocus Pocus has a charm and timeless cheesy cringe, making it one of Disney’s best live-action films ever made.

So you would think that given my enjoyment of cheesy cringe movies that everyone else hates, I’m going to be gushing over Hocus Pocus 2… Well, let’s see if that is the case.

Title: Hocus Pocus 2
Production Company: Walt Disney Pictures & David Kirschner Productions
Distributed by: Disney+
Directed by: Anne Fletcher
Produced by: Adam Shankman, Lynn Harris, David Kirschner, & Steven Haft
Written by: Jen D’Angelo
Starring: Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy, Sam Richardson, Doug Jones, Whitney Peak, Belissa Escobedo, Tony Hale, Hannah Waddingham
Based on: Hocus Pocus by Mick Garris & David Kirschner
Release dates: September 30, 2022
Running time: 104 minutes
Rating: PG (USA)/PG (AUS)

 

Story

Hocus Pocus 2 opens back in Salem in the year 1653, where Winifred Sanderson has rejected a set-up for marriage by the local Reverand, upsetting him and the townsfolk. Winifred charges back to the cottage that she shares with her sisters. After a confrontation takes place that attempts to rip the trio apart, they escape into the Forbidden Forest, where they are set upon by a Witch looking to take their life force to keep her youth and vigor. The Witch notices the potential power of the trio, noticing that Winifred has a pension for trouble and mischief. To the trio she gives a gift: Book.

Moving forward to modern-day Salem, we are introduced to Becca, a high-school girl who uses crystals to gain luck and pretends that she is a Witch to annoy the people in her class, getting outcast because of it. It’s only through her association with Lilia, the daughter of the Mayor of Salem and girlfriend of popular Football player Mike, that she and her friend Izzy, are invited to Lilia’s Halloween party that night. Becca and Izzy reject going to the party, thinking they will just be made fun of again, and end up going to the local magic shop, run by Gilbert. Gilbert entertains the children of Salem by telling them the story of the Sanderson Sisters, complete with some of the events of 1993 (The setting of Hocus Pocus) added in. Gilbert ends the story with the mention of Book, which is locked up in a case in the shop and reveals a new black candle from the story.

After revealing that it is her Birthday, Gilbert gives Becca the black candle, stating that a Witch usually gets her powers on her 16th birthday. Becca and Izzy go out to their sacred place, which happens to be the former Forbidden Forest, and Becca lights the candle, thinking it will manifest her desires and powers… But instead resurrects the Sanderson Sisters (from hell we are left to assume). The Sanderson Sisters sing their own song “The Witches are back” before capturing Becca and Izzy, who throw off the Sisters’ desires to take their life force by saying they are 40-year-old teenagers.

In an attempt to stop the Sisters from eating them, Becca and Izzy take the trio to a location where they tell them that they can get pre-made potions: A Walgreens. It’s from here that the Sanderson Sisters start interacting with the modern world with good and bad results, as Becca and Izzy try to find a way to stop the Sanderson sisters before they undertake a ritual that will give them ultimate power, and the ability to get revenge on the bloodline of the Reverend, who’s current lineage is related to the Mayor of Salem.

During this time, Gilbert helps the Sanderson Sisters with their ritual, stating that he saw them in 1993 after his candy was taken by the local bullies, and also saw their deaths but was able to use Book to make a new black candle for the Sisters’ resurrection. A part of the tasks that Gilbert undertakes has him unearthing Billy Butcherson, returning him to the fold. (It turns out that Billy has been awake in his grave for 29 years thanks to Winifred’s spell in Hocus Pocus.) Upon their first attempt to cast the spell, Becca, Izzy, and Lilia (Who joins them after becoming a kidnapping target) arrive and stop them, with Book switching sides (Book doesn’t want the spell to be used due to the clauses of sacrifice needed) to join the kids. Becca is able to manifest powers like Winifred, giving them a chance to escape.

Winifred, without Book, casts the spell to its completion, while Book shows the girls why it doesn’t like the spell to be cast: The price is the thing that the spellcaster loves most, which ends up being Winifred’s sisters. Winifred realizes too late what the sacrifice is and is heartbroken, asking the girls to do anything to bring her sisters back out of her love for them. The girls, all three of them, cast a spell of reunion, with Winifred disappearing to join her sisters where ever they are. The new Coven make their way back into town, imitating the Sanderson Sisters’ trademark walk along the way before stating “What are we doing, that’s just stupid”.

In a post-credits scene, we see the black cat from the magic shop jump up onto a shelf that has a box containing “Black Candle #2” before fading out on a close-up of the cat’s face.

Characters

• Bette Midler as Winifred “Winnie” Sanderson
  It’s a blessing to see Madler back as Winifred. As I’ll probably say with all three Sandersons, it was great seeing them back in their respective roles. You couldn’t tell that 29 years have passed given the way that Midler just dropped back into the role, with every motion and word sounding like it was written in 1993. A truly magical performance.
• Kathy Najimy as Mary Sanderson
  While Kathy has had a dramatic weight loss since Hocus Pocus, it didn’t stop her from being every part of the stupid and silly Mary that we all came to love once again. Her jokes and mis-wording of classic sayings were a delight to hear once again. As with Midler, a magical return to form.
• Sarah Jessica Parker as Sarah Sanderson
  Probably the one who you noticed aged the most, but much like Midler and Najimi, Parker jumped right back into the role of Sarah like it was 1993 all over again. Mostly repeating her classic lines from Hocus Pocus, she still had some interesting moments when it came to taking things literally and interacting with the modern world. A true highlight coming at the end of Hocus Pocus 2 that should have been explored more, but still great to see her back again.
• Doug Jones as Billy Butcherson
  As much as I loved Billy in Hocus Pocus, he just didn’t get enough screen time in Hocus Pocus 2. You could tell that he was really just there for the sake of having another Hocus Pocus reference in Hocus Pocus 2, as he doesn’t get many lines and only really helps Gilbert for a few scenes before being put back in the non-speaking role of having his mouth sown shut again. It would have been nice to have Billy in more of the film, helping Becca and her group, but I guess since he’s a guy, we can’t have him actually do anything these days.
• Whitney Peak as Becca
  Becca… My god is she right out of the modern-day main character checklist. She’s bland, boring, and gets powers out of nowhere for no other reason than she’s female and Hocus Pocus 2 did the whole women empowerment storyline trope. I pretty much make comparisons to Rey Palpatine from Stars Wars Episodes 7 through 9 as that is exactly the same thing that happens here in Hocus Pocus 2. Character comes out of nowhere, and goes from nothing to all-powerful with no real trial, experience, or reason other than “female”.
• Lilia Buckingham as Cassie Traske
  She is the mayor’s daughter and helps stop the Sanderson Sisters… That’s it. She does nothing but hosts a party for the whole film, we get some hints that she was once friends with Becca, and then she suddenly helps out in the end because of the “power of three” I guess?
• Belissa Escobedo as Izzy
  Becca’s quirky best friend. Spends most of her time waiting on Becca to do something before jumping in to help. Nothing really going on here with the character other than she is the quirky best friend trope.
• Sam Richardson as Gilbert.
  He is the owner of the Olde Salem Magic Shoppe, the former home of the Sanderson Sisters. He saw the Sanderson Sisters flying over Salem after his candy got stolen by the bullies in Hocus Pocus, and also saw their deaths at the end of the film too. He has spent years obsessed with the Sanderson Sisters and puts the events into motion that give Hocus Pocus 2 the main plot. He finds out that the Sanderson Sisters are not as misunderstood as he thought they were, as they use him as a gopher to get the items for their ritual before dispatching him.
• Taylor Paige Henderson as young Winifred Sanderson, Nina Kitchen as young Mary Sanderson, and Juju Journey Brener as young Sarah Sanderson
  GIVE THESE GIRLS A TV SHOW!! Seriously, all three are perfect casting for the young versions of the Sanderson Sisters it hurts that they were only used in the prologue of the film’s story. I’d give anything to see them in an “Adventures of the Sanderson Sisters” show where we see more of the events leading up to the events of Hocus Pocus. The big stand-out, obviously, is Henderson as young Winifred, who has everything down from the look to the way Midler speaks, and even her mannerisms. I hope to see more of these three as they grow as actors.

What Worked

When Hocus Pocus 2 begins, you are treated to the backstory of the Sanderson Sisters, and how they are very close emotionally as a family unit. The casting for the younger trio comes off perfectly, to the point where you want to see more of what they can do (A Hocus Pocus TV series maybe?). When they get the book, you can see how it instantly changes the power structure of the trio but they still find their love for each other to be the strength that tightens their bond as a Coven as well as Sisters. Once again, the casting of these kids is perfect and they deserved a bigger role in Hocus Pocus 2.

Then when you get to the more modern era for the main story, it’s when the Sanderson Sisters return as their original cast that things feel just like they did 29 years ago in Hocus Pocus. Midler, Najimi (Side note: Well done on the weight loss!), and Parker jumped right back into their old witches’ shoes as they had only taken them off yesterday. Their chemistry on screen is a highlight of Hocus Pocus 2, with things getting a lot better since they interact more with the modern world than just riding a bus. Seeing them in a Walgreens drinking Baby Oil Face Cream and spraying themselves down with sprays was funny to watch, as their inability to adapt was played for a lot of laughs (The scene with Parker pointing out “the little woman trapped in the box” when referring to Alexa was the best laugh in Hocus Pocus 2) with the results being a great nostalgic trip back to 1993.

A Failed Incantation (What didn’t work)

To say that Hocus Pocus 2 doesn’t hit all the marks is an understatement. I know it’s becoming standard Disney practice in their films, but they just about hit every mark in the “update for modern-day audience” checklist that Hocus Pocus 2 ends up being a slow, predictable, and downright insulting film to people who waited 29 years for a sequel. Don’t believe me? Well, let’s run the list, shall we?:

• Brilliant opening scene that feels like the original film, giving you hope this will be good – check
• Modern day setting that looks drab and lacks personality – check
• An authority figure that has very conservative Christian values and is hated by people secretly – check
• A “minority” main character – check
• A goofy “minority” best friend/sidekick giving off LGBTQ+ vibes – check
• A white girl with blonde hair who is a bitch – check
• All males are either stupid or practically useless – check
• Mention of “the patriarchy” – check
• New characters make original characters look like fools at every turn – check
• Main character gains powers suddenly, and masters them instantly with no training – check
• Sympathy for the villain out of nowhere/redemption arc – check
• Post-Credits tease for a sequel – check

Honestly, I could go on and on with that list and still not be done. There is so much in Hocus Pocus 2 that either doesn’t make sense or comes out of nowhere with no explanation that it baffles the mind. When it comes to seeing things from a fan and general audience perspective, Hocus Pocus 2 just feels dated right off the bat, with the film having that “made for modern audiences” feeling that too many films have these days. Hocus Pocus was not a movie that needed updating, it just needed to tell a good story about the Sanderson Sisters and that’s it. Disney couldn’t even get that right.

Then there are the songs… My god, the songs! Hocus Pocus had a hit with Midler’s rendition of Jay Hawkins’s “I Put A Spell on You” which worked so well that its hard to find a copy of the original when you search the song through Google. The song worked so well with Hocus Pocus because it was something in the movie that Winifred heard being played and she learned the lyrics on the spot and made up the rest to work with her enchantment spell. In Hocus Pocus 2 we get two songs: A whole new song called “The Witches are Back!” which is sung by the Sanderson Sisters upon their resurrection for no reason at all, and then later they try to do the whole enchantment of a crowd thing again with a HORRIBLE rendition of Blondie’s “One Way or Another”, again with no rhyme or reason other than “I put a Spell on You” was such a hit last time.

Buh-Bye… And Good Riddance! (Closing)

My wife and I went into Hocus Pocus 2 with all the excitement and hope of the children we were 29 years ago, wanting something, anything that would be on par with Hocus Pocus 2, a film we love so much to this day. By the end of Hocus Pocus 2, we felt beaten, betrayed, and like we had our hearts ripped out. Waiting 29 long years for the sequel to one of the best live-action Disney films, only to get something that felt like it was made in the mid-2000s Disney Channel Originals made-for-TV movie. I know there will be a lot of the late-20s/early-30s fans who are going to love Hocus Pocus 2 just because it had their favorite characters back on the screen again, and we agree with them, but looking at the whole film, it just doesn’t hold a black candle to the original film, and that is something that we will curse forever.