Story: A group of high school students form a coven of witches. A sequel to the 1996 film, "The Craft".
The Craft is such an iconic 90's movie. One that I enjoy (I've seen a lot of times), appreciate, and understand its cult status but don't share the wild love most fans have for it. So, much to my annoyance of crappy remakes/reimaginings or sequels that come way too late, I expected this to be a huge turd. Everything from the glossy trailer, and the fact that it's Blumhouse producing (they really tried hard with Black Christmas second remake), my expectations were so low you could feel hell's fire. That crappy trailer made the product look like a cheap & long CW episode. Fortunately, and I don't know if it's because my expectations were zero or because this was well made, but I really had a good time.
The pacing is tight (running around an hour and a half) as there is never a dull moment (even if situations get thrown and resolved way too quickly or serve no purpose whatsoever). There were situations that could've been taken advantage of, like say, that predictable reveal at the end. There's some build-up but that turkey needed more time in the oven. The soundtrack is hip and you can't go wrong with having an Alanis Morissette tune on your movie.
But this mostly works because of the girls and their chemistry. They're likable and good actresses. Cailee Spaeny (Devs), Gideon Adlon (Mustang), Zoey Luna (Pose), and Lovie Simone (Selah And The Spades) are all charming, even if the last 3 don't get much to do. Their moments together feel organic. I appreciated the fact that unlike most movies of this type, where the girls are always catty and bitchy, here they are actually nice, and respect each other. This goes well with the message of unity between women and unlike Trash Christmas never feels in your face or preachy. David Duchovny (Evolution) and Michelle Monaghan (Source Code) are mostly side characters but their presence is much appreciated.
Unfortunately, any build-up or tension between characters is lost once we get to the messy final act where we discover who's the real threat (not much of a surprise). This third act feels cheap, rushed, and awkwardly handled. On the other hand, I do appreciate Zoe Lister-Jones for trying to do something different with this story even if a lot of scenes are very similar to the original but never as powerful. Actually, it's a lot like watching the original but with zero darkness.
The Craft (2020) is never as good as the original but there's a lot you can enjoy if you can somehow separate the two. Cailee Spaeny handles herself quite well (she was great in Hulu series Devs) and I no doubt wanna see more lead roles for her in the future. All in all, you can do so much worse than this (like torture yourself watching Mulan a second time) as there's never a dull moment. The Craft mostly feels like wasted potential, unnecessary, and trying really hard to find a new audience while catfishing fans of the original.
P.S. What was up with the cameo at the end? What a waste. Why are all the men assholes in this movie? Is it because they're white?
Watch this trailer:
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