Race to Witch Mountain - Theater
AndyO review: * * *
When I was 7 years old, my Mom took me to see "Escape to Witch Mountain." I remember a few things: A grown-up sat in front of me so that I 
couldn't see, and I thought a movie about kids from outer space was amazing. (I think I also had a childhood crush on Kim Richards, who played Tia Malone.) "Witch Mountain" probably remained my favorite movie until "Star Wars" came out two years later, showing me what a real Sci-Fi movie could be.
Over 30 years later, we have "Race to Witch Mountain," which isn't really a remake -- but a "re-imagining" of the original film. In this film, the focus has been shifted from the kids to Jack Bruno (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson), a Las Vegas cabdriver who's been in and out of trouble. Bruno becomes the chauffer of the two kids, Sara and Seth, who turn out to be (surprise!) aliens. Like the original movie, these kids can do all sorts of cool stuff -- like move objects, talk to animals, etc.
I happen to glance at the review of this film in The Seattle Times before I took my boys, and the title, "Close Encounters of the Robotic Kind." After seeing the film myself, I realize the Times' reviewer, Moira MacDonald, missed the mark somewhat. Yes, there are some robotic performances -- but that's because the kids are aliens and, I guess, English isn't their first language. Sure, Johnson is no Robert Deniro, but he does fine in the role here. I'm always surprised when reviewers don't seem to understand that families are looking for interesting, fun entertainment -- just like "Witch Mountain." The theater where we watched the film was 90% full at 3:30.
The only gripe I have is I think the film was pushing beyond a PG rating, with all the guns and head-bashing going on. This was definitely more worthy of PG-13.
Cameos: The two kids from the original film, Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann, show up as a waitress and sheriff in this film.
Race to Witch Mountain
Dwayne Johnson, Alexander Ludwig, Ciar�n Hinds, Chris Marquette, Garry Marshall, Ike Eisenmann,
Labels: film
