The classic Roald Dahl story The Witches has had a make-over and is landing in Kiwi cinemas as we speak with Oscar-winner Anne Hathaway as lead witch.
Oscar-winning director Robert Zemekis teaming up with visionary Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro to tell a Roald Dahl story - what a trifecta of awesome that is!
But my high hopes for this story of the Grand High Witch weren't quite delivered on.
Leading the charge of top-notch actors here is Hathaway sporting a comically extravagant accent and in dire need of a good floss as the rather terrifying witch-in-chief.
She is joined by the marvellous and under-utilised Stanley Tucci, and one of my all-time favourites, Octavia Spencer.
This is the story of a young boy and his mouse Daisy, and a nasty coven of claw-handed witches intent on sniffing out children and turning them into mice.
It's one of Dahl's darker tales and paired with del Toro's cinematic aesthetic, you don't need me to tell you this is not for the faint-of-heart littlies in your household!
The odd thing here for me is this movie just doesn't add up to the sum of all its parts.
Despite the storytelling royalty, it's rather vanilla and pedestrian in the telling and doesn't rise above mostly mediocre.
Dahl and Witches fans, you might find more to love, but it's a two-and-a-half star watch for me.
