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OnFocus: The Craft (1996)

With the release of The Craft: Legacy, I find it time to look back at one of the coolest 90s teens films, The Craft. Released in 1996, it was a hit among young adults worldwide that it influenced an entire generation (the adult millennials of today) about depression, sisterhood, corruption of power, and of course, witchcraft, all within the confines of the fragility of teenage mind as its shell. It also set a trend across the future of the genre including Charmed, The Magicians, Secret Circle, Chronicle, The Covenant, and The Coven, the last two actually making a more-or-less rip-off of The Craft's theatrical poster. I remember it played almost every week on HBO that it is simply impossible not to watch it. The only thing more iconic than the snakes scene is probably the "we are the weirdos, mister" bus scene.

I have saved you all from oblivion! - Nancy

Director Andrew Fleming has stated that he wanted to break the Wizard of Oz trope of witches and present a realistic story, which he did masterfully, I think, as inexperienced young girls being handed influence beyond their control is simply and naturally bound for a dark turn. Fleming has also stated that witchcraft on the film potentially serves as an allegory for "burgeoning female sexuality" and how scary it can be. Actress Rachel True has even joked that as their characters' powers get stronger, their skirts get shorter.


One of the more attractive aspects of the film is its presentation of a character-driven story. Each

First DVD I ever bought

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