"Race to Witch Mountain" is a science fiction adventure film released in 2009. Directed by Andy Fickman, the movie is a remake of the 1975 film "Escape to Witch Mountain". The story follows two siblings, Sara and Seth, who possess supernatural powers and are on a mission to save their homeland, a distant planet known as Witch Mountain. Dwayne Johnson plays the role of Jack Bruno, a Las Vegas cab driver who gets entangled in the siblings' mission when they enter his cab one night. As they embark on a race against time, they encounter various challenges and obstacles, including government agents and alien bounty hunters who are determined to capture the young aliens. Throughout the film, the siblings' powers are gradually revealed, including telekinesis and the ability to communicate with animals.
Throughout the film, the siblings' powers are gradually revealed, including telekinesis and the ability to communicate with animals. These powers come in handy as they attempt to outsmart their pursuers and make their way to Witch Mountain, where they must retrieve a device that their people need to save their planet from destruction. The movie combines elements of science fiction, action, and adventure, and is filled with thrilling chase sequences and special effects.
A White Witch in love with life on the road
Samantha Womack has long been a familiar and much-admired presence on TV, but the actress currently touring the country in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe wants to make one point clear: the stage, she feels, is her natural home.
“The theatre feels to me kinder,” Womack was saying one recent afternoon, speaking from her north London perch situated not far from where the director Michael Fentiman’s theatricalisation of the time-honoured CS Lewis novel has been in rehearsal; this production is itself based upon Sally Cookson’s acclaimed stage adaptation that premiered in Leeds late in 2017 before finding a London home two years later at the Bridge Theatre. Its latest iteration is embarked upon a UK and Ireland tour ending in Norwich in April: Womack is playing the villainous White Witch, one of the many figures from the children’s classic that is coming to three-dimensional life onstage.
But wouldn’t Womack, a veteran of EastEnders across many seasons, prefer the routine that comes with a long-running TV show?
“Actually, if I’m really honest, I’ve learned about myself that I like the creative control,” she says by way of elaboration, that comes with theatre-making at its best. “You want to be able to do what you want creatively, and you tend to get that in the theatre. The lights go down,” she says referring to the start of each stage performance, “and it’s you on your own for two hours. I relish that and can find it difficult to hand [the work] over to someone in TV or film who then plucks it up to be used in the editing suite. I find that soul-destroying.”
The material in any medium, though, has to be rewarding, which isn’t ever in doubt here. Womack recalls first engaging with Lewis’s immortal story when she was a girl before sharing it as an adult with her two children. “I remember for the first time encountering [Lewis’s] very vivid and descriptive world and I certainly recall the feeling of alienation of the refugee children” – the four Pevensie siblings at the book’s ever-beating heart. But only in playing the White Witch has she experienced the fascination that comes from reconsidering the tale from the inside out.
“Coming at it this way round is very different. What I’ve been able to realise is that the very same character I read as a child and who my children came to interpret later as someone fearsome and icy is in fact coloured with a neurosis and anxiety and unpredictability that I had never understood from the outside. We’re discovering that place where she’s ugly at the core but that it comes from her own desperate need to survive: the White Witch morphs into whatever the person she’s bullying wants her to be.”
What of the burden of expectation? Womack responds with a wry chuckle as befits someone whose stage CV has encompassed Nellie Forbush in South Pacific and Morticia Addams in The Addams Family – to name just two characters about whom theatre audiences might well have preconceptions. “I remember on South Pacific, having not just to take over from [Broadway favourite] Kelli O’Hara but also coming up against the physicality of Mary Martin, who originated the role and was short and small and cartwheeling and there I was being 5’9” trying to find a way to make her move.”
In much the same way with the White Witch, Womack is aware not least at the beginning that “there will be 10 people, each of whom has their own idea how the character should look and move, and sometimes they can work against each other.” Where does that leave her? Womack graciously defers to her colleagues: "I'm actually staggered by the level of artistry in this particular cast. With the director Michael [Fentiman], it's not about 'what are you feeling? stand here'. His main thing is that we are living and breathing together and that we are listening to everyone's breath and that if we don't, it won't succeed. I just love this way of working - the freedom it gives you to perform."
The performer is also enthusiastic about the appeal of touring the country – a vanished pursuit for some actors but one that Womack is quick to embrace. “I’ve spent my life being quite nomadic,” says Womack, who speaks of “growing up on the QEII [cruise liner]” amidst a world of dance troupes and 1940s-style Big Band music. “My great great great grandmother was in PT Barnum’s circus at Madison Square Garden [in New York] and all my family have been musicians or performers in the theatre. If I’m in one place too long, I start to feel quite claustrophobic.” On tour, she says, “each space becomes a different challenge and I love that; I’d get bored otherwise, I think.”
And besides, theatre by rights brings with it one thing you’re unlikely to find on a film or TV set. “Rapturous applause,” says Womack, all but purring down the phone line. “I do still like that.”
Milena Markovna "Mila" Kunis was born to a Jewish family in Chernivtsi, Ukraine.
It also touches upon themes of loyalty, trust, and the importance of family bonds. "Race to Witch Mountain" received mixed reviews from critics but performed well at the box office, earning over $106 million worldwide. Overall, "Race to Witch Mountain" is an entertaining and family-friendly film that offers an exciting blend of sci-fi and adventure. With its charismatic cast, compelling story, and thrilling action sequences, it provides an enjoyable viewing experience for audiences of all ages..
Reviews for "Discovering the Wonders of Witch Mountain"
1. Michael - 1/5 stars - I found "Race to Witch Mountain" to be incredibly predictable and lacking in originality. The storyline felt tired and formulaic, with no surprises or hidden depths. The characters were one-dimensional and lacked development, making it difficult for me to feel any connection or investment in their journey. Additionally, the special effects and action sequences were uninspiring and felt like a cheap imitation of other, more successful sci-fi adventure films. Overall, I was extremely disappointed by "Race to Witch Mountain" and would not recommend it to others.
2. Sarah - 2/5 stars - "Race to Witch Mountain" had potential, but ultimately fell short for me. The concept was interesting, but execution was lacking. The pacing felt off, with the plot moving quickly from one action scene to another without giving us a chance to fully understand or care about what was happening. The dialogue was also quite weak, with cheesy one-liners and forced moments of humor that seemed out of place. Despite the strong performances from Dwayne Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb, the film failed to engage me emotionally or intellectually. Overall, "Race to Witch Mountain" was just another forgettable Hollywood blockbuster that didn't leave a lasting impression.