It's a thousand years to Christmas, Mr. Holloway.

Something Wicked This Way Comes

(1983)

There's a good film in here somewhere, clearest in the library scenes between Jonathan Pryce and Jason Robards. And, coming from Disney's commendable - if patchy in quality and financially iffy - dark period, there's a strong element of thematically murky and even adult material running through it.

Unfortunately it's scuppered by Disney-enforced reshoots (clearest in the spider attack sequence where the kids are a good year or so older). It's mystifying how studios still go down this route of delaying the release of a film they aren't happy with while they pump in several £m of new scenes only for it to still go belly-up when it does come out. It’s also saddled with some of the most Disney-kids you could imagine in the leads.

The film has a lovely, moody, look, though, and James Horner test drives is his Aliens-attack theme 3 years early. In an alternate universe, Gilliam was thrown this after Time Bandits and so found it unnecessary to make Dr. Parnassus.

***

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