Rating: 
Summary: Tacky Is Fantastic!
Review: Oh my goodness... this movie. It is the definition of 1980s culture and has "I WAS MADE IN THE 80's" written all over it. I love it. It is so outrageously funny and scary at the same time. I get the same feeling watching this as I do when I watch "Speed Racer"... I can't help but laugh at it when it tries to be serious:-) Lynn Holly Johnson gives a one-of-a-kind, out of this world (literally) performance. (Air-head comes to mind.) I have no idea how Betty Davis was pulled into this film. I'm glad she's in it though! This cinematic experience leaves some quotes in your mind for life. "I looked and looked" & "She had to push you down to get you free" are lines that stick with you for all time:-) This film is fantastic! Watch it please! It is one of those movies we need to save when the end of the world comes... forget about Titanic & Gone With The Wind! It's a classic.
Rating:
Summary: Good flick, although not for young children
Review: Im not surprised this movie was pulled, because of parents complaints. After watching such movies as 'shaggy dog' and 'that darn cat', this DISNEY film will grab you in a way your not accustomed to. A family with 2 girls moves into an old English home set in the woods. The eldest daughter stumbles upon mysterious secrets that unravel into a spooky ending (can't you give the plot or i'll give it away). This is a movie that i wouldnt recommend young children seeing and i definitely wouldnt watch it alone at night.(I keep finding this video in the 'childrens' section of the video stores and im always puzzled...)
Rating: 
Summary: 20 years later, still scared.
Review: When my parents bought their first VCR, I was allowed to rent any Disney movie I wanted. I chose this one, and I had nightmares for YEARS. There are very scary, abrupt images of a trapped, blindfolded girl in random mirros--frightening for a child. It is a very, very creepy film. Parent should preview it before showing it to children 10 and under.
Rating: 
Summary: Movie great, the rest not so good
Review: I love this movie. I've been a fan since the age of 10. I was thrilled to get the film on DVD in wonderful quality. I wasn't too happy, however, to hear the commentary. Hugh's commentary lacked any imagination or interest. Every scene he constantly droned on about this camera angle or that. When the movie reached the end filmed by another director, he constantly criticized it and lamented that his was better.
The alternate endings were amazing, though I will always prefer the ending that was released with the movie. I found it annoying that Hugh thought that his ending was the best. to me, the ending directed by him drained the movie of all mysteriousness. Though it was nice to finally see The Watcher, the cause of Karen's captivate as told by Jan seemed empty, since Jan didn't speak with The Watcher, she just "knew."
One last little quip, and you can rail on me if for this if you want. I thought the actress who played Karen in the alternate endings looked too much like a boy in a wig. There is no way that could have been her (his?) real hair.
I am definitely thrilled to have the movie on DVD, but I doubt I will trouble with the commentary or alternate endings again.
Rating:
Summary: Bone to pick with Anchor Bay
Review: First the DVD review: DVD is awesome! This is everything, without question, a DVD should be! Studios shouldn't even consider releasing a movie on DVD unless it has extras like this one has! You get the following: THX Certified 1.85:1 Widescreen Enhanced Transfer, Commentary by director John Hough, 2 Alternate Endings, John Hough Bio, Theatrical Trailers & TV Spots, 20 page Booklet with Interviews, Rare Artwork, Stills, and a world class performance from Bette Davis! We have owned this movie since it came out on Disney home video back in the early 80's. Say what you want about Disney live action movies but without question the one thing you can't say is they are not original movies! There is just nothing else like old Disney live action movies! I LOVE them! Yes, this movie is scary! Now, about Anchor Bay. I appreciate the fact that Anchor Bay has put out a lot of the Disney live action movies. I really do! Without Anchor Bay we wouldn't have the DVD releases of not only this movie but The Cat From Outer Space, The Last Flight of Noah's Ark, The Black Hole, The Devil and Max Devlin, Condorman, and many more! My problem with them is these are very limited releases and go out of print at the speed of light! Why? I suspect either they didn't anticipate a demand for these great movies or they are trying to set a "you better get it now" standard for other DVD companies to follow. They would make more money if they just kept these DVD's available for longer than a year. Look at the release date on this DVD. April 2002. C'mon, what is THAT all about? Now, for those that missed or didn't even know this DVD was released they are forced to pay twice what it is worth. Sounds like the only people making money off this are the resellers and not Anchor Bay. You can go to the Anchor Bay website and send them an email and ask the same questions I pose here, but they will ignore you!
Rating:
Summary: OK movie, but a must for DVD collectors
Review: The Out-of-Print Anchor Bay version of the WATCHER IN THE WOODS DVD is up there with the first, one-day release of the LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (w/the original ending) as the Holy Grails of DVD collectors. This version has two Alternate Endings which has more special F/X, explains the story better and actually shows what the Watcher in the Woods looks like (the original version you never actually see the Watcher or know its origins). The alternate endings also make more sense (as we follow Jan going into the other Watcher's Homeworld and bringing the unaged Karen back). The movie itself is so-so, but the special features in this rare DVD find makes it worth it.
Rating:
Summary: Not as scary as I remember
Review: I first saw this movie on VHS in the early 80's and it scared me to pieces! I remember dreaming about it and playing that i was in the movie for months and months afterwards. For years my sister and I would refrence it when scary things happened. So, needless to say, I was excited to find it was on DVD (and with all the bonus material) that I scooped it up right away. My first reaction was that "gee, it's not nearly as scary as I remember". Still it's a creepy film that will surely creep out kids and early tweens. Sure the acting isn't that great, some of the effects are cheesy and the story doesn't always add up, but the creepy mood sells it and I found myself still jumping and getting as tense as I did as a child. The commentary is pretty boring and adds little to your understanding or appreciation fo the film. The alternate endings are quite dumb and I'm glad they were never used, still I'm to have the chance to view them and see how the filmakers designed the story. But Im most excited to finally see the movie in widescreen. WATCHER isn't the stongest film but it's style and mood of uneasiness will get to you. This is a perfect film to get if you remember it when it first came out or for Disneypiles as this is an important stepping stone for the company.
Rating:
Summary: NERAK
Review: I think this has to be one, if not THE scariest of movies I have ever seen! This movie is non stop suspense! It strongly stands as a classic horror movie without all the blood and guts! It scared me to death as a little kid, but I kept going back and watching it over and over and over! For a while I was scared to look in mirrors, or if a breeze would blow through the wood when I was in them I couldn't (and still can't) help getting chill bumps sometimes. Many aspects make the movie scary - it's setting, the main plot, and mainly the music! I can still hear that song from the music box playing in my head. I think this is a brilliant film, and was impressed that Disney made it. Though it may scare the pants off your kids, I don't think it's inappropriate for them. It lacks todays standards of what makes a "good" horror film - blood, guts, extreme violence, nudity and horrid language left and right. Though the movie is scary, it still holds that Disney "wholesomenes." If your kids want to see a scary movie, let them watch this one. I watched it and I'm fine ten years later! Besides, the end of the movie explains what the heck was going on, and you understand that it wasn't some psycho monster lurking in the woods. The problem is resolved, and the ending is relieving and happy. It's a great thriller that keeps me coming back. It you haven't seen it YOU MUST!
Rating:
Summary: Another Twilight Zone Story from Disney
Review: If you've looked at my reviews, you know that I have an affection for Rod Serling. Most of my favorite films are Twilight Zone types of stories and this one is no exception. Disney has fluctuated between outstanding animated features and some very good live-action films. At one point, the studio lost some of its direction (after Walt died, by the way), and the animation became less than perfect, the live-action films strayed from being family classics (in the sense of Swiss Family Robinson, Old Yeller, etc.) and called up a darker side of the studio. This story, along with Black Hole, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and Child of Glass, is of that era, or should I say, flavor. All four films are not your standard Disney fare. Of them, only Child of Glass remains in the vault, possibly because it was made for television, rather than for the theater. It is well worth looking for and hopefully the studio will release it some day in the future. Back to the present. This one is due for rerelease in August, 2004. I have it on DVD and as a one-time video store employee, I would recommend it for someone who wanted to see something different in the way of suspense and horror. And, like the good suspense film it is, it does not resort to violence, but a collection of oddities which seem more surreal and strange than supernatural. Ironically, the original release (and the Anchor Bay DVD has all the alternate endings and other goodies - I can't speak to the new release) has one of the strangest twists at the end that one can imagine. Thank you Disney for doing it this way, instead one of the alternatives, for it truly remains the best approach, even if the FX needed to pull off the other approaches had been available and perfected. This is the best and it turns out to be something different! Science Fiction. Huh? Yes. The ending is purely science fiction in nature and scope. Something that you wouldn't expect given the gothic setting of the story and yet, that is exactly what it is. I won't reveal how, but not one customer came back and disagreed with me after watching the film. A note on my rating. Normally, I would have given this five stars, but after watching this a couple of times, I found Holly's voice to wear thin and grate on my nerves. As the story progresses, her voice correctly shows the tension that she is developing as the mystery deepens. It reaches a shrillness that is seldome used as she approaches her own breaking point. Unfortunately, the increasing shrillness works only with the alternate endings. With repeated watchings (it isn't noticeable in the first watching) it fails to work well with the selected ending, even though the ending was the best choice as I mentioned earlier. It is unfortunate that the studio didn't go back and remix her voice to correct the problem, but they were running out of time once the producers realized they couldn't pull off the original ending. As I mentioned, you probably won't notice the problem on your first, or even second watching, but it is there. One final word. Even on the third and forth watchings, I still tended to jump out of surprise... and that's something that's a rarity.
Rating:
Summary: Holy #$*$!
Review: Scared the holy crap out of me! More horrifying than Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Hailed as the scariest movie since Mary Poppins II - The Return of the Umbrella!
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