Roald Dahl's The Witches (2020)

This is a grandly entertaining CGI-assisted take on the classic tale with strong turns from Octavia Spencer and Stanley Tucci, though it may be too intense for younger viewers and the ending stumbles slightly.

Anne Hathaway gives a flamboyantly fun high-camp evil performance as the Grand High Witch that provides the film with its sick-joke center of gravity. Zemeckis stages the elemental storyline with prankish flair in this baroque cartoon horror remake set in the American South.

The remake is mostly captivating, with flamboyant wickedness from Anne Hathaway and warm, humorous work from Octavia Spencer as the grandmother. It delivers sufficient charm, invention, and family-friendly mischief despite some inconsistent energy.

Anne Hathaway delivers a full-tilt, wild-eyed performance as the Grand High Witch that is mesmerising and a reason to see the film. The review highlights vibrant additions from the writers and the restoration of Dahl’s ending.

The critic notes Anne Hathaway aims for hammy, funny villainy as the Grand High Witch and has a whale of a time in the role.

The critic finds it a mild disappointment that lacks in the frights department despite being kicky and colourful with a strong Anne Hathaway performance as the Grand High Witch. It hits the story beats but feels undercooked overall, though still a fun Halloween treat.

The critic finds Zemeckis's saccharine, polished retelling of Dahl's story lacks the original's darkness and wit, though the cast (especially Octavia Spencer) appears to be having fun.

The film delivers some of the most unapologetically scary imagery in recent family entertainment and features a standout, scenery-chewing performance from Anne Hathaway as the Grand High Witch. However, the writing is clunky, the plotting thin, and the ending weak.

Zemeckis delivers a dreadful, soulless adaptation that lacks magic or purpose, feeling like a sentimental misfire rather than a faithful or inspired take on Dahl. The film sanitizes the source material's edge into bland, aimless family content.

Zemeckis strips the wicked black magic and queasy edge from Dahl's story, replacing it with a softening, coddling filter and sentimental nostalgia. The result is defanged and curiously flat despite some creepy digital effects.

This competent but unnecessary remake casts a weak spell, with slick CGI that lacks the grotesque impact of the prior version and fails to fully embrace ugliness or danger. It benefits from a mostly Black cast but remains a bland streaming filler.

The film is full of spectacle but short on magic, leaning on CGI and action at the expense of wit, sophistication and character; it is surprisingly impersonal compared to the 1990 Roeg version.

The film is an aimless adaptation without direction or purpose, unable to capture Dahl's macabre-cozy mix, though Hathaway delivers an extra, committed performance full of big choices. It feels flat overall, even with grotesque elements.

The critic finds Robert Zemeckis’s retelling grumpy rather than scary, with comedy that feels frantic and strained. Octavia Spencer’s grandmother provides some easy charm that rescues the film a bit.

The critic calls the film slick and dull, a bloodless adaptation that strips away the story's revolting panto-horror through overly believable CGI and a self-confident comical tone. Anne Hathaway's grotesque Grand High Witch performance stands out as the one effective element.

The critic praises Zemeckis and Hathaway for having great fun with the magical, maniacal tale and calls it a perfect Halloween treat with the right mix of trick. They single out the faithful adaptation of the novel, the relocation to the American South, and the cast's gusto and heart.

Zemeckis offers a zippy, fun cautionary tale with a timely 1960s Alabama setting that intensifies the fear in meaningful ways, though pacing jitters and the ending falter.

The critic praises Hathaway for swinging for the fences in a frenetic, tech-assisted performance as the Grand High Witch that captures the book's menace, especially in the second half with its mouse transformations. Spencer's grounded turn and the strong production values are highlighted, though the high-decibel approach and potential scariness for young viewers are noted.

The remake offers more menace and edge than typical family films while staying closer to Dahl’s text with a tighter narrative and clearer emotional stakes for the boy. It falls short of the original’s prosthetic effects and practical magic, relying instead on broad CGI and a wearying performance from Hathaway.

The critic finds the remake creepy but ultimately superfluous, neither a disaster nor an improvement on the 1990 Nicolas Roeg version. Hathaway's campy, effects-assisted turn as the Grand High Witch and the resort-set action sequences are singled out for praise amid complaints about extraneous narration and overly faithful elements.

The film is boring and flat, missing every opportunity to be interesting and instead opting for cartoony CGI mice and broad performances that talk down to the audience.

The critic calls the film straight-up childish and pandering to children rather than serving them well, criticizing its juvenile humor and lack of imagination. They single out Hathaway's over-the-top performance and the dodgy digital effects as major flaws compared to the 1990 adaptation.

Anne Hathaway’s campy performance can’t save the remake, which is almost boring and fails to cohere into a truly memorable movie despite some scary scenes.