ESCAPE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN is a likeable live-action Disney film of 1975, in which a couple of psychic kids find themselves pursued by evil old men who want to use them for their own gains. It feels very much like Brian De Palma watched this and decided to make his adult version which came out as THE FURY, as well as prefiguring a whole sub-genre of similar pictures in the early 1970s. Anyhow, this is a light and breezy adventure, bolstered by strong performances: the kids are likeable (for once), the typical Disney sentiment is kept to a minimum, and Donald Pleasence and Ray Milland make a fine tag-team of baddies. The special effects are invariably dated these days, but I find that they have a magic all of their own when watched in retrospect.
Review of Escape to Witch Mountain
