Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Race to Witch Mountain (Three-Disc Edition: Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy)



Amusing SF
You'd think a Las Vegas cab driver had seen it all, especially with that UFO convention in town, right? Almost right, until two solemn children show up in his car. They have a wad of cash that they don't seem to understand very well, an urgent need to reach some desert destination, and a schoolbook way of speaking. It seems as legal as anything in Las Vegas and the money's green, so they're off.

So, a moment later, are the government goons in their black SUVs, in hot pursuit. The kids turn out to be something pretty special. The big bad gov guy calls them "illegal aliens," without stating just which laws they broke or just how alien. Then the chase is on with a few extras thrown in, like a killer robot and the only UFOlogist in the world who actually has a clue.

There's plenty of action, a bit of bloodless violence, some ominous but ambiguous threats against the kids, and a steady stream of one-liners to keep the mood from getting too grim. Maybe this isn't one...

Blu-ray: An action-driven screenplay but overall, an entertaining film with an awesome, lossless soundtrack!
More action than the original! A new step forward for the popular sci-fi Walt Disney film.

As a fan of the original 1975 film "Escape to Witch Mountain", I have to admit that I felt a bit standoffish about a retelling of the film series. With Dwayne Johnson cast as the primary character in the film, it was evident to me that the new film "Race to Witch Mountain" would be a more action-based film but over 35 years since the first film, you can only wonder how far special effects would go for and how campy but yet entertaining and family friendly, the new storyline would be.

Taking on the helm as director for "Race to Witch Mountain" would be Andy Fickman (producer for "Anaconda" and director of "The Game Plan", "Who's Your Daddy"). The screenplay would be written by Matt Lopez ("Bedtime Stories") and Mark Bomback ("Deception", "Live Free or Die Hard" and "Godsend"). Music by Trevor Rabin ("12 Rounds", "Get Smart", "National Treasure: Book of Secrets", etc.)...

Two Kids, a Wade of Cash, and All Kinds of Trouble
Jack Bruno (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) is a cab driver. He has a shady past but is trying to put all that behind him. It's time for the annual science fiction convention in Las Vegas, which means his cab is filled with weirdos, including Dr. Alex Friedman (Carla Gugino), one of the speakers.

Yet the trouble comes in the forms of two teenagers. Seth (Alexander Ludwig) and Sara (AnnaSophia Robb) appear in his cab at the start of one shift. They offer him a wad of cash and ask to be taken to an undisclosed location. When they arrive, Jack discovers it is an abandoned cabin in the middle of the nowhere. Not wanting to leave them alone, he discovers something he never imagined. Is he in over his head? Can he help Seth and Sara complete their mission?

I hadn't watched the originals growing up, but I did watch them earlier this year to prepare for this one hitting theaters. It turns out it really didn't matter. They could have slapped any name on this and it...

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