With the awful memory of the Christmas Devil still in my mind, The Legend of the Christmas Witch sounds like it’s going to be another lousy yuletide horror. Imagine my surprise then when this one turns out to be a real delight. It’s an Italian kids fantasy-comedy based on an old legend I’d never heard of before. Did you know that there’s a “Little Christmas” held on January 6th to mark the end of the ‘twelve days of Christmas’ when a nice witch brings toys to good children? Well, now you do. Seems to me like the British/American card companies should have latched on to this concept and milked it for all it’s worth by now.
Anyway, this is a beguiling film from 2018, filled with impressive Harry Potter-esque visuals, plenty of whooshing around on magic broomsticks and a pleasingly creepy atmosphere to complement the cute, festive stuff.
Paola Cortellesi plays the Christmas Witch who moonlights as lovely primary school teacher Paola by day, with a normal life and doting boyfriend Jeff (Fausto Maria Sciarappa). However, between the hours of midnight and 8am, she transforms into an ugly, wart-nosed witch and spends her nights making her list, checking it twice and sorting toys and such.
25 years ago, we learn, a naughty dog mauled Paola’s trusty rolodex (it was the ‘90s after all) meaning she accidentally missed one boy off her list. As is the tradition in these films, that kid grew up to be a filthy rich, eccentric toymaker named Mr Johnny (Stefano Fresi) who hates the holidays and blames that one incident for ruining his whole life. After the witch is caught on camera and the video shared on social media, devious Mr Johnny has Paola kidnapped so he can find out where she keeps her list and take over the whole Little Christmas racket for himself.
A gaggle of Paola’s plucky students then set out to find her, the whole thing taking on a Goonies vibe with some mild peril and special effects-driven antics. There’s some great set-pieces, including an exciting BMX race down a snowy mountain and a proper scary bit where the kids are trapped in a massive trash compactor. Later, there’s a cool effects chase sequence with Johnny zooming around on a rocket pack pursuing the witch on her broom. It’s all really impressive for a film I never heard of.
The film’s aimed at kids but has lots to offer grown-ups too, particularly those (like me) weaned on ‘80s Amblin flicks like E.T. and Gremlins. Cortellesi imbues this crone with a feistiness and dare-I-say-it sexiness that makes her captivating. This witch is magic.
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