(The Disneycember logo is shown, before showing clips from Hocus Pocus. The arrangement of "I Put a Spell on You" from the Nostalgia Critic review of this movie plays in the background throughout)
Doug (vo): Well, here's a first. I'm actually doing a re-review of a Disneycember I did, Hocus Pocus. As a lot of you know, when I saw this film, I really didn't like it. In fact, I downright hated it, to a point where people were asking for years for me to do a Nostalgia Critic of it. (Some clips from the Nostalgia Critic's review of the film are shown briefly) I finally did, I sat down, watched it again, and...yeah, I still didn't like it, but I will admit it wasn't quite as bad as I remember it. The review was pretty obvious in what I'm trying to say, but if you wanted a more down-to-earth talk about it, I guess that's what this video is for.
Re-review[]
Doug (vo): So let's address the things I didn't like about it originally. The big focus was the virgin talk. Everybody gave this kid such a hard time for him being a virgin. Hell, it's even the final line. I always remember that being a problem, and while it still is, I'll admit, it's not as bad as I remember. Even when I did the movie review, I made a conscious effort not to mention it as many times as the movie does, which I think is something like four or five times. That's still weird, but, yeah, it's wrong to say it's the focus of the entire film.
(Scenes focusing on the witches are shown)
Doug (vo): I brought up how the witches don't have anything funny to say, and that's still true. But watching it again, I realize that even though they don't have anything funny to say, they still kind of say it in a funny way. These three actresses are actually really enjoyable. You kind of get the feeling they weren't given anything to work with, but they just said, "Screw it. We're gonna throw our all into every single moment we're onscreen", and it shows. I get the feeling they sort of huddled together and talked about how they're gonna move and what each one is gonna do when the camera starts rolling. Does that excuse the bad writing? No, but it...does kind of make it a little entertaining. These three are a lot of fun to watch.
(Various clips resume showing)
Doug (vo): Now, does that excuse how incredibly bland the main characters are? No. Does that excuse how the story makes absolutely no sense whatsoever? No. Does that excuse a lot of really awkward, just downright stupid moments? Absolutely not. But overtime, I am realizing more and more why this is getting a following, and that the correct terminology for it really is "guilty pleasure". It's like my love for (poster of...) Ernest Saves Christmas. It is a stupid movie and nothing makes sense about it, but some things are just so good, I can't help but watch it every year. Hocus Pocus, I can now see, is kind of the same way. There is a lot of Halloween in it, there are a lot of nice visuals. It's over-the-top and cartoony, but that just kind of makes it stand out even more. The song sequence with her singing is a lot of fun, a lot of the effects actually still kind of hold up, and even all those clichéd 90s tropes, I think people are kind of laughing at how clichéd they are now, and how you did see them just in every kids' movie at the time. It doesn't mean it's by any means smart, but I can see how people can be really entertained by it.
Final thought[]
Doug (vo): It's hard for me to say I actually enjoy it, but I do enjoy...parts, enough to at least finally see why other people enjoy it, and I think that's an important thing to understand. So I guess the conclusion of this re-review is...if you're really forgiving and just want to see some Halloween visuals, you'll probably be satisfied here. Or if you really like those classic 90s tropes and you just kind of want to have a laugh at them, you'll probably really like this, too. I still really don't like those scenes where they address the whole weird virgin shaming, but like I said, it's not as focused on as I remember it. So maybe the majority of kids watching it will probably overlook that, too, and just be distracted by how entertaining the three witches are. I just felt like this movie deserved a second chance. Do I still like it? No, but I can understand why others like it. If this is something you watch every Halloween, I finally get it. I probably won't be joining the group, but I can at least say there are some really fun and weird things about it that you can get a few laughs at. I'll enjoy my incredibly stupid silly guilty pleasures, and you can enjoy yours.
(Like the first review, it ends by showing the scene of the witches' performance of "I Put a Spell on You")