The Craft
The Craft is one of those few movies that scares the viewer - not with gore, but with ideas. Instead of glamourizing witchcraft, it shows, somewhat, the true side of it. But that it not what makes this movie good. The four performances are superb, the script is good with some minor plot holes (but the performances give the movie enough speed to jump over the holes), and the special effects are high quality.
The movie opens with a wild opening credits scene. It almost shows what the movie is going to be like: a wild ride. Sarah (Robin Tunnley) is moving to Los Angeles from San Francisco. When she gets there, she finds the house large, but leaky. The next day, she goes to her first day of school. She is out of place (no uniform) and awkward. No one pays much attention to her, except for three "witches" (played by Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, and Rachel True). Bonnie (Neve Campbell) thinks she is the "fourth" of their group. She finds out she is right when she spots Sarah making her pencil stand on end and turning it, without the use of strings.
That is all that I am going to say about the plot of this movie. It is a visual movie, and that is hard to explain in writing. So far, I have seen this movie four times. I love it. It makes for great entertainment. Most teenagers, especially girls, should find this movie intriguing. It is filled with cool special effects, including one memorable scene, where the house is filled with snakes, rats, and bugs. It is an original scene and one to be commended.
The performances, especially Fairuza Balk's, are outstanding. I don't think they will get nominated for Academy Awards, though I would like to see it happen, but they keep the movie above other films of this genre. Robin Tunnley provides a contrast to all the other characters and this keeps the film in balance. Neve Campbell and Rachel True are also good and give the movie some added depth.
Most adults should like this film, but this movie is mostly for teenagers, even though the R rating. The R rating is a mild one. It got the R rating mainly because of the subject (witchcraft), although language, violence, a sex scene (though fully clothed), and a rape scene do add to it. Overall, this movie is entertaining and excellent.