![]() ![]() Tony and Tia looked and acted like normal kids. Case in point, whereas Tony and Tia had their telepathic communication and foresight, Sara and Seth are given far less interesting powers of withstanding impact and obnoxiously reading minds. That it ends up inferior and lacking at every turn does. That Race departs from its source's fairly light storyline doesn't bother. There is very little to distinguish the routine chase, as suits in black SUVs and aircrafts trail our unquestionably harmless and noble good group. Unfortunately, by that time, enough hooey has transpired for viewers to have stopped wondering. Following Escape's design, Race takes its time before spelling out the facts. Here, it feels like everything gets explained but in ways that don't engage or matter. At first glance, the slightly younger leads of yore seemed to be cut from the same cloth as Mary Poppins, their enchantment neither specified nor questioned. ![]() Joining Jack and the kids in this race is astrophysicist Alex Friedman (Carla Gugino), who's convinced that hard science can be used to prove alien life exists.īoth of the '70s Witch Mountain movies delivered bits of action and science fiction, but this reimagining goes much further, leaving little time for the comedy and silliness once mandatory in live-action Disney. Department of Defense, led by the shady-acting Major Henry Burke (Ciarán Hinds), which is already investigating some breakthrough local phenomena. Of initial concern is a Siphon, an armored terminator who seems to have wandered off a "Power Rangers" set. But after Sara and Seth demonstrate some of their unworldly abilities, the driver's mind opens, at least enough to realize there are greater forces in pursuit than some underworld hoods. Jack is skeptical toward extraterrestrial life, especially on the weekend when most of his fares are loony believers in town for the UFO convention. Sara (AnnaSophia Robb) and Seth (Alexander Ludwig), a couple of blonde siblings in their early teens, somehow turn up in the taxi of Jack Bruno (Johnson), a Las Vegas cabbie with both aspirations and a criminal record. Race instead dwells on the danger that follows them. Race opens with a montage of headlines and presidential sound bites that exude the "truth is out there" sentiment that seemed to peak fifteen years ago with the height of "The X-Files." Escape conveyed the fun of extrasensory gifts. The difference between how 1970s Disney treated the subject of aliens and how 2000s Disney does becomes clear immediately. But, they didn't, and so Race bowed in March as something of a vehicle for wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne Johnson, better known as "The Rock", the ring name he's officially stopped using. You would think, then, that the studio betting on this project would know better than to entrust it to the star and director of The Game Plan, which I can confidently declare the worst Disney movie to have graced theaters this decade. With a high-profile cast, an estimated budget of $50 million, and an over 3,000-theater release, Race to Witch Mountain went about as big as a live-action family film can without having a summer or holiday season opening. For the third revisit to the universe of supernatural youths, Disney cranked up the ambition and went for broke. The second was a bona fide made-for-TV Escape movie remake in 1995. The first time was a television pilot that, not chosen to become a series, merely aired in 1982 as part of the company's 1-hour Saturday night program. Since the favorable reception given 1975's Escape to Witch Mountain and 1978's Return from Witch Mountain, Disney twice delved back into the world imagined in print by Alexander Key. As an added bonus, there is the fact that many fans of the fantasy adventures now have children around the same age they were when taking to them. They're good enough to be remembered, but simple enough to benefit from being updated. The original Witch Mountain movies seem ideal for remake treatment. (Siphon), Cheech Marin (Eddie Cortez - uncredited)īuy Race to Witch Mountain from : 1-Disc DVD Alex Friedman), Ciarán Hinds (Burke), Alexander Ludwig (Seth), Tom Everett Scott (Matheson), Christopher Marquette (Pope), Billy Brown (Carson), Kim Richards (Tina), Iake Eissinmann (Sheriff Antony), Garry Marshall (Dr. Theatrical Release: Ma/ Running Time: 98 Minutes / Rating: PGĭirector: Andy Fickman / Writers: Matt Lopez (screen story & screenplay), Mark Bomback (screenplay), Alexander Key (book)Ĭast: Dwayne Johnson (Jack Bruno), AnnaSophia Robb (Sara), Carla Gugino (Dr. ![]()
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