{"id":42583,"date":"2015-12-01T08:00:55","date_gmt":"2015-12-01T13:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/?p=42583"},"modified":"2022-02-05T23:46:55","modified_gmt":"2022-02-06T04:46:55","slug":"movie-review-escape-witch-mountain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/movie-review-escape-witch-mountain\/","title":{"rendered":"Movie Review: Escape to Witch Mountain"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Escape<\/a><\/p>\n

DVD Cover Copyright Disney<\/em><\/p>\n

Based on Alexander Key\u2019s 1969 novel of the same name, Escape to Witch Mountain<\/em> was theatrically released on March 21, 1975. The live action flick is 97 minutes in length.<\/p>\n

Plot Summary and Opinion<\/strong><\/p>\n

In California, young siblings, Tony Malone (Ike Eisenmann) and Tia Malone (Kim Richards), enter the Pine Woods Orphanage. They do not remember much about their past, but the general nature of that past soon becomes obvious to the audience. Tony uses supernatural powers to levitate objects to defeat a bully, Truck (Dermott Downs), and Tony and Tia save the life of an attorney named Lucas Deranian (Donald Pleasence) by prophetically warning him of an impending accident if he enters his limousine.<\/p>\n

Deranian is grateful for the warning, but he is more intrigued by Tony and Tia\u2019s overt powers. His boss, Aristotle Bolt (Ray Milland), is desperate for means to increase his wealth, and the Malone siblings are the solution. Bolt forces Deranian to obtain forged papers such that he can pose as Tony and Tia\u2019s uncle and thus adopt them. The children know Deranian is not really their uncle, but Mr. Bolt\u2019s residence, \u201cXanthus,\u201d is captivating. In place of an orphanage, Tony and Tia will now reside in a mansion with a plethora of stuffed animals and ice cream, not to mention free horse-riding lessons! Deranian may be an impostor, but the children are in paradise, so all is well. Right?<\/p>\n

The plot is fast paced and interesting, albeit shallow. The supporting characters lack depth, with many appearing for fairly lengthy stretches before being thrust aside.<\/p>\n

Puzzle<\/strong><\/p>\n

As cloudy skies gradually part to pure sunshine, Tony and Tia\u2019s complete backstory methodically reveals itself over the course of the film. The process is well executed, and the Eureka moment is fulfilling.<\/p>\n

Acting<\/strong><\/p>\n

The best performance in Escape to Witch Mountain<\/em>, in my opinion, is turned in by Eddie Albert, who genuinely portrays a lonely yet kindly old man, Jason O\u2019Day. Conversely, I was unimpressed by Richards\u2019s performance as Tia. I found Tia excessively awkward and almost grating at times, most notably at the campsite when she and Tony recount O\u2019Day\u2019s unfortunate family life.<\/p>\n

Music<\/strong><\/p>\n

Escape to Witch Mountain <\/em>contains no feature songs, but background music is included throughout the movie and is integral to several scenes.<\/p>\n

Mysterious tunes complement the opening credits and each of Tia\u2019s flashbacks.<\/p>\n

Tony plays the harmonica to predict the future and manipulate his surroundings. The resulting music ranges from soothing to nails-on-chalkboard irritating.<\/p>\n

A fun, whimsical number augments a puppet show at Xanthus.<\/p>\n

Imagery<\/strong><\/p>\n

Loaded with instances of levitating objects, including a baseball glove, a baseball bat, a marker, a gun, a harmonica, Tony himself, a jacket, a hat, bags of flour, a recreation vehicle, and an unidentified flying object, Escape to Witch Mountain <\/em>is pleasing to the eye.<\/p>\n

History buffs should note John Trumbull\u2019s famous portrait of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on the wall of the office of Sheriff Purdy (Walter Barnes).<\/p>\n

Humor<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most of the humor in Escape to Witch Mountain <\/em>concerns the powers of Tony and Tia. The scenes where the siblings figuratively turn the tables on Deranian and other antagonists are comical, as are the final segments with the assorted vehicles on the mountain. The funniest scene, in my opinion, involves Sheriff Purdy battling a \u201cghost\u201d in his office. On the whole, the film is consistently amusing but rarely, if ever, hysterically funny.<\/p>\n

Relationship to Other Disney Films<\/strong><\/p>\n

A sequel to Escape to Witch Mountain<\/em>, Return from Witch Mountain<\/em>, was theatrically released on March 10, 1978. Ike Eisenmann and Kim Richards reappear as Tony and Tia.<\/p>\n

Race to Witch Mountain <\/em>(2009) was a remake of Escape to Witch Mountain<\/em>. Eisenmann and Richards are afforded respective cameos as Sheriff Anthony and Tina.<\/p>\n

Towards the beginning of Escape to Witch Mountain<\/em>, the children at Pine Woods Orphanage take a field trip to see Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs <\/em>(1937).<\/p>\n

Orphans also play major roles in Pollyanna <\/em>(1960), The Rescuers <\/em>(1977), and Meet the Robinsons <\/em>(2007).<\/p>\n

After Tony and Tia escape, Mr. Bolt orders Deranian to recapture them even if he has to \u201cchase them on a magic carpet.\u201d A magic carpet was at the center of Aladdin <\/em>(1992).<\/p>\n

In the Parks<\/strong><\/p>\n

No attractions or character meets based directly on Escape to Witch Mountain <\/em>are featured at Disney\u2019s theme parks. At Walt Disney World and Disneyland, however, guests can enjoy multiple mountain-based attractions: \u201cBig Thunder Mountain Railroad\u201d at the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park, \u201cSplash Mountain\u201d at the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park, \u201cSpace Mountain\u201d at the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park, \u201cMatterhorn Bobsleds\u201d at Disneyland Park, and \u201cExpedition Everest\u201d at Disney\u2019s Animal Kingdom. All of these attractions are roller coasters except Splash Mountain, which is a flume.<\/p>\n

\"Escape<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo Copyright Liliane Opsomer<\/em><\/p>\n

Mr. Bolt questions whether Tony and Tia\u2019s powers are merely \u201cfigments\u201d of Mr. Deranian\u2019s \u201cvery fine imagination.\u201d At Epcot, guests can enjoy a multi-sensory extravaganza, \u201cJourney Into Imagination With Figment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mysterious visual effects are integral to the Haunted Mansion, located at both the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park.<\/p>\n

Overall<\/strong><\/p>\n

Though it is by no means a great film, Escape to Witch Mountain <\/em>delivers a compelling enough story to entertain people of all ages. It is worth a watch, especially on a dark and stormy night.<\/p>\n

What do you think of Escape to Witch Mountain? Let me know in the comments!<\/em><\/p>\n

Sponsored Ad:<\/strong>\u00a0 Would you like to help support The Mouse For Less website in continuing their mission of being THE Disney vacation planning resource?\u00a0 You can do so by purchasing Escape To Witch Mountain<\/a> from our Affiliate Link through Amazon. Thanks so much for your support!<\/p>\n

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  • escape to witch mountain<\/li><\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    DVD Cover Copyright Disney Based on Alexander Key\u2019s 1969 novel of the same name, Escape to Witch Mountain was theatrically released on March 21, 1975. The live action flick is 97 minutes in length. Plot Summary and Opinion In California, young siblings, Tony Malone (Ike Eisenmann) and Tia Malone (Kim Richards), enter the Pine Woods…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":42585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-disney-movies"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/67"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42583"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42583\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82589,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42583\/revisions\/82589"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}