The Craft: Legacy – Movie Review (3/5)

THE CRAFT: LEGACY is a new teen horror movie. However, it’s also very much a reboot of (and the sequel to) an iconic horror movie from the 1990s. In many ways, this is an updated version of the same story. And yet, not quite. Read our full The Craft: Legacy movie review here!

THE CRAFT: LEGACY is a new teen horror movie with a very familiar plot. Well, it is if you’ve watched the 1990s horror movie The Craft. This new movie is both meant to reboot what never became an actual horror franchise and it works as a sequel. Something the trailer pretty much also states.

However, please note that the trailer for this movie contains several scenes that are not in the actual movie. Also, you should be aware that there are quite a few references to the original movie. If you’re not familiar with the original at all, then you will miss out on certain plot points as well as various parallels.

Continue reading our The Craft: Legacy movie review below.

A new take on a familiar plot

The Craft: Legacy is essentially a new take on the plot from the 1996 movie The Craft. And yes, we did re-watch that movie to get ready for this new one. And honestly, it’s not one of the horror movies that have aged terribly well. Sure, it’s entertaining and, in terms of nostalgia, I was still thrilled. However, Scream is from that same year and has aged much better!

The story in The Craft: Legacy is a current version of the same story but with some noticeable (and much appreciated) updates. Especially when it comes to the relationship between the four girls which is much healthier – and less of a teen drama caricature – than the 1996 version. 

Also, the actors are a lot closer to acting their age, which was hardly the case with the original film. But hey, that was the way it was done in the 1980s and 1990s. We’ve all grown up watching people in their 20s and 30s pretend to be high schoolers.

And sure, I have no doubt people will falter this movie for being too politically correct. Well, boo-hoo cry me a river. By now we should all know that the real world has a lot more diversity than Hollywood has presented for decades. Besides, even the 1996 movie was quite politically correct in many ways – for its time, anyway.

One protagonist to lead them all

Unlike the 1996 movie, where the four witches shared the screen time in what came close to being equal, the focus is squarely on one character this time around. She’s portrayed by Cailee Spaeny who we recently saw in the Devs FX/Hulu mini-series. Also, she was in Bad Times at the El Royale and actually had her feature film debut with Pacific Rim: Uprising.

Cailee Spaeny does exactly what she needs to, but I really have to mention Nicholas Galitzine (from the Netflix series Chambers) as the one who made the biggest impression. He manages to make you feel a lot of different things. You might love him or hate him (or both!), but he certainly makes an impression. Yeah, Nicholas Galitzine is awesome in this movie!

Also in this movie are Michelle Monaghan (Messiah) and David Duchovny as the most well-known actors. Michelle Monaghan delivers a solid and believable performance as the mother of the protagonist. David Duchovny looks so desperately tired and bloated that it’s actually distracting at first. Maybe he needs to talk to his The X Files co-star Gillian Anderson about self-care!

Watch The Craft: Legacy on demand

The Craft: Legacy was written and directed by Zoe Lister-Jones. And yes, I could tell that a woman was running the show this time around. Obviously, The Craft universe has always been about women, which only makes it appropriate that a woman is telling the story. This is only the second feature film from Zoe Lister-Jones (after Band Aid from 2017).

At first, The Craft: Legacy does come across almost like a teen-comedy for a while after the core characters have been introduced. However, do not be fooled by this. It’s almost like the classic horror-comedy where you’re meant to laugh before the jump scare hits. That way, the horror will hit harder because you won’t be ready.

Having said that, this is not the kind of horror movie that has many surprises (with one huge exception that worked like a charm). If you’re paying attention, you’ll know where the story is heading from the beginning. And isn’t that classic for many teen horror movies? Because yes, The Craft was actually made for teenagers and, of course, so is The Craft: Legacy.

Still, that doesn’t mean adults couldn’t also learn something from watching it. Besides, anyone who was a teenager when The Craft came out should want to check this out. I know I was curious and I’m happy I watched it.

The Craft: Legacy is out On Demand from October 28, 2020. Perfectly timed for Halloween 2020.

Details

Director: Zoe Lister-Jones
Writer: Zoe Lister-Jones
Stars: Cailee Spaeny, Gideon Adlon, Nicholas Galitzine, Hannah Gordon, Julian Grey, Michelle Monaghan, David Duchovny