Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Bad Witch Review: A Magic Infused Buddy Comedy / Drama

Chris Kozlowski	...	Xander Perkins Jackson Trent	Jackson Trent	...	Roland Grimm Clare Lefebure	Clare Lefebure	...	Veronica Jonathan Helwig	Jonathan Helwig	...	Conrad Miller James Hennigan	James Hennigan	...	Henry Hunter Abe Kim	Abe Kim	...	Hans Dom DiMercurio	Dom DiMercurio	...	Frederick Miller Anna Fagan	Anna Fagan	...	Melissa Matthew Sharpe	Matthew Sharpe	...	Tim (as Matt Sharpe) Andrew Zibritosky	Andrew Zibritosky	...	Crazy Preacher (as Andy Zibritosky) Stephanie Giancola	Stephanie Giancola	...	Tricia Daniel Braswell	Daniel Braswell	...	Detective Proctor Clayton Stocker Myers	Clayton Stocker Myers	...	Ron Michael Sigler	Michael Sigler	...	Mr. Grimm Chase Graham	Chase Graham	...	Jack

Release date: April 27, 2021
Running time: 82 minutes
Directed By: Joshua Land and Victor Fink
Written By: James Hennigan
Starring: Chris Kozlowski, Jackson Trent, Clare Lefebure, and James Hennigan

Xander is a witch whose abuse of black magic has led him to disaster after disaster. After trying to go clean of witchcraft, Xander befriends a young loner, helping Roland with bullies, girlfriends, and other teenage atrocities.

Ty Gentner	...	Shadow Figure Hannah Fogler	Hannah Fogler	...	Betsy Jessie Dubyoski	Jessie Dubyoski	...	Party Goer Ryan Neitzey	Ryan Neitzey	...	Party Goer Jari Neuman	Jari Neuman	...	Party Goer Laura Hennigan	Laura Hennigan	...	Party Goer Chanda T. Taylor	Chanda T. Taylor	...	Party Goer Tonya Thomas	Tonya Thomas	...	Party Goer Darryl Barnes	Darryl Barnes	...	Party Goer Margarita Chukhina	Margarita Chukhina	...	Diner Patron Camillus Santiful	Camillus Santiful	...	Diner Patron Russell G. Voelker	Russell G. Voelker	...	Diner Patron Michelle Mullins	Michelle Mullins	...	Diner Patron Russell E. Patrick	Russell E. Patrick	...	Diner Patron Hannah Grim	Hannah Grim	...	Diner Patron Chris Utterback	Chris Utterback	...	Diner Patron Mozella Place	Mozella Place	...	Diner Patron Iran Jones	Iran Jones	...	Bar Patron Stacy Jones	Stacy Jones	...	Bar Patron
Bad Witch skirts the line between comedy and horror with it falling more on the campy, comedy side.  It was not what I expected as I thought it would be a film that took itself a little too seriously, but the movie is trying to entertain above all.  It deals with magic and a witch in a modern setting and with Xander (Kozlowski) trying to balance his magical abilities with the consequences that come from it.  And when he meets a nice but bullied kid Roland (Trent), he decides to take the kid under his wing.  The fun camaraderie between the two is when the film turns into more of a buddy comedy, and seeing Roland explore magic is a fun experience.  And the movie generally has a good use of practical effects without trying to do too much.  Bad Witch knows a lot of its limits and tries to stay in those lanes.

But Bad Witch does have a limited amount of magic.  As with many indie films, the movie has some forced delivery.  The actors are all fun to watch and some of their characters are over the top (which seems to be the director's preference), making some of the characters and lines are a little much.  Some jokes just didn't work for me, but luckily the inherent humor of some of these character's interactions filled that void.  And the film tries to up the drama in the ending but it just feels like it escalates too quickly.  Although it does lead to a quick wrap up of the story, it felt like it rushed the ending and also tried to introduce extra drama in the end.  The film has a few arcs and I definitely enjoyed the middle, comedy part much more than the dramatic endpoints.  

Bad Witch is not magic, but the campy  teenage comedy / horror film has enough fun characters and entertainment that it might bewitch you.

Rent it.

Stacy Jones	...	Bar Patron Te'Quan McCoy	Te'Quan McCoy	...	Bar Patron Matt Neufeld	Matt Neufeld	...	Bar Patron Charmian Knight Hess	Charmian Knight Hess	...	Bar Patron Tim Lumber	Tim Lumber	...	Bar Patron Phillip Cruz	Phillip Cruz	...	Bar Patron Donna Madison	Donna Madison	...	Bar Patron Rest of cast listed alphabetically: Clark Furlong	Clark Furlong	...	Young Xander Treava	Treava	...	Bartender Martin Lopez	Martin Lopez	...	Princeton Jonathan Sienkiewicz	Jonathan Sienkiewicz	...	Ken David Cohen	David Cohen	...	Bar Patron Lenny Grossman	Lenny Grossman	...	Gala Attendee Ben Loeh	Ben Loeh	...	Harry Perkins Produced by  Dom DiMercurio	...	producer James Hennigan	...	executive producer Rachel Pollock	...	producer    Directed by  Victor Fink	...	(co-director) Joshua Land	...	(co-director)Writing Credits (in alphabetical order)   James Hennigan
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Bad Witch is available digitally and on demand on April 27, 2021. 

For additional information about the film and to rent / buy it, check it out at the links below.

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