Escape to Witch Mountain (1975 film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Escape to Witch Mountain |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | John Hough |
| Produced by | Ron Miller Jerome Courtland |
| Screenplay by | Robert Malcolm Young |
| Starring | Eddie Albert Ray Milland Donald Pleasence Kim Richards Ike Eisenmann |
| Music by | Johnny Mandel |
| Cinematography | Frank V. Phillips, ASC |
| Editing by | Robert Stafford |
| Studio | Walt Disney Productions |
| Distributed by | Buena Vista Distribution |
| Release date(s) | March 21, 1975 (U.S.) |
| Running time | 97 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Money made | $20,000,000 |
Escape to Witch Mountain is a classic 1975 American fantasy and science fiction film. It's based on a popular 1968 book by Alexander Key. Disney made the movie, and John Hough directed it. This film was the very first one in the exciting Witch Mountain series.
Contents
The Story of Tony and Tia
The story is about a brother and sister named Tony and Tia. They are orphans and live in an orphanage. The kids have amazing secret powers! Tony can move things with his mind, especially when he plays his harmonica. This is called telekinesis. Tia can talk to Tony with her thoughts, which is telepathy. She can also understand animals and sometimes sees things that will happen in the future. This is called premonition. Tia always carries a special "star case" with her. Inside, it holds a strange map.
Tia has some fuzzy memories from when she was very young. She remembers an accident at sea and a man she later realizes is their Uncle Bené. She thought he had drowned during their rescue.
A Rich Man's Interest
One day, Tia has a premonition during a field trip. She warns a rich lawyer, Lucas Deranian, about a dangerous accident. Deranian tells his boss, a millionaire named Aristotle Bolt, about the children's special abilities. Mr. Bolt is very interested in strange and unexplained things. He wants to find the children at all costs.
Deranian pretends to be the children's uncle and takes them from the orphanage to Mr. Bolt's big mansion. Tony and Tia are careful at first, but they are impressed by all the fancy things in Bolt's home.
The Escape
Soon, Mr. Bolt shows his true colors. He tells the children he has been watching them with hidden cameras. He knows all about their unusual powers. That night, Tia and Tony decide to escape. They use their powers to control a wild horse, trick the guard dogs, and open the security gate. Tia's cat, Winkie, also helps by making an allergic security guard sneeze and let them pass.
Mr. Bolt sends Deranian and another tough guy, Ubermann, to chase after the children.
Finding Help and a Mystery
Tia and Tony hide in a green-and-white motor home. It belongs to an older man named Jason O'Day. At first, Jason is grumpy and doesn't like the kids. But slowly, he starts to see their powers and believes their story. Tia's vague memories of a disaster at sea make him curious.
Jason agrees to take the children on the path shown on Tia's star case. This path leads them to a mysterious place called Witch Mountain. People say strange things happen there. They try to avoid Mr. Bolt, the police, and even a crowd of people who think the children are witches.
The Truth About Witch Mountain
As they get closer to Witch Mountain, Tony and Tia start to remember everything. Their "accident at sea" wasn't a boat crash at all. It was a spacecraft! Tony and Tia are actually from another planet far away. The double star symbol on Tia's star case shows where their home planet was.
Their planet was dying, so some survivors came to Earth. They settled near Witch Mountain and waited for the other children, who each had a star case to guide them. Tony and Tia are the first to arrive. They are finally reunited with their Uncle Bené! He survived the crash thanks to a friendly shark he asked for help. They all get on another spacecraft. As Mr. Bolt and his team leave in defeat, Jason sees the spaceship fly over him one last time before landing near where the new community lives.
Main Characters
- Eddie Albert as Jason O'Day: A lonely widower who travels in his motor home. He helps Tony and Tia.
- Ray Milland as Aristotle Bolt: A very rich man who wants to use Tony and Tia's powers for his own gain.
- Donald Pleasence as Lucas Deranian: A lawyer who works for Mr. Bolt and tries to capture the children.
- Kim Richards as Tia Malone: A nine-year-old orphan with special psychic powers.
- Ike Eisenmann as Tony Malone: Tia's older brother, an orphan with powers to move things with his mind.
- Denver Pyle as Uncle Bené: Tony and Tia's real uncle.
Filming Locations
The movie was filmed in beautiful places in California, including:
Other Witch Mountain Movies
Escape to Witch Mountain (1975) was the first film in the Witch Mountain series.
- The second movie, Return from Witch Mountain, came out in 1978. Ike Eisenmann and Kim Richards played Tony and Tia again.
- In 1982, a TV movie called Beyond Witch Mountain was made.
- In 1995, the original movie was remade for TV as Escape to Witch Mountain.
- A new movie, Race to Witch Mountain, came out in 2009. It told a new version of the story.
In Spanish: La montaña embrujada (película de 1975) para niños
