On a more lighthearted note
strangedivine posted a link to a Youtube video of the The Worst Witch tv movie recently.
Oh, how I am glad that he did. I saw this movie only once when I was little, but I loved it. And I never could take the first Harry Potter book seriously because of it. After all, J.K. Rowling basically took the whole thing from this movie (and mayhap the tv series/book series of the same title). The Worst Witch is about an outcast orphan girl with perpetually messy hair who attends a prestigious Witches' Academy somewhere in England. She worries about being able to make it as a Witch and often gets in trouble with the strict, dark and haughty Potion mistress, and the Potion mistress' favorite student: the blonde, bullying, and snooty Ethel Hallow, who likes to taunt our titular witch with her aristocratic family's superiority. The Headmistress of the school is a kindly, maternal old lady with white fluffy hair, who has a liking for the heroine. Despite her disasters in Potions class, the heroine turns out to be quite good at broom-flying after some practice, and manages to be selected for the Broom Formation Flying Team who will put on a show for the Grand Wizard at Halloween. Of course, she will also have to save the entire school from a plot by some evil witches at the same time as impressing the Grand Wizard.
(What JK Rowling didn't get from Worst Witch, she appears to have gotten from Neil Gaiman's Books of Magic.
But I digress.)
Anyway, this movie is fun and awesome, and it has a young Fairuza Balk and Tim Curry as the Grand Wizard. Also, it appears that the most evil thing you can be is an 80s punk/new wave fan. And if you have a Southern accent. That's bad.
The "Evil" witches are shown to be evil by the fact that they wear Cyndi Lauper-like colorful fishnet and tatter outfits, and have bright-pink dyed hair, or green hair gelled up into spikes. The Headmistress' niece, Donna, is criticized by the headmistress for being "too flashy" and too material, and likewise wearing funky 80s fashion. She also happens to talk in amazing slang while snapping gum: "Do you think Big Daddy Wiz will like the rags?" Oh, that Mad Donna.
But if girls having new-wave fun is frowned upon, apparently being the gayest wizard since Liberace is all right if you're Tim Curry. He flies in sporting a ridiculous pink satin cape and proceeds to croon a little Halloween ditty that must be seen (heard?) to be believed. ("Anything can happen on Ha-llo-ween! *Ta-dum* Has anybody seen my tam-bou-rine?")
He also happens to say everything in a hyper-sexual tone of voice that seems entirely innapropriate considering his audience is a bunch of 11 year old girls.
I will attempt to illustrate this with some quotes, italicized to better convey exactly how he delivers the lines: "It's great to be here, with you young witches, on this faaahbulous night. Remember girls, show the world. Let them know it's Hahhhlloween."
"Ohhhhh, Ms. Hhhardbroom... your girls? I lovvve it, Miss Hardbroom. Let's get the show on the road."
"Now, Mildred...have you made any plans for this unexpected holiday?"
"No, Grand Wizard. I suppose I'd better practice my flying!"
"Would you like to practice... with me?"
"With you?!"
"Oh... absolutely."
Seriously, it is like that and more. Oh, and there's a poster of Aladdin Sane-era Bowie in the girls' dormroom if you look closely at the end of part 6 (above). Which you should all watch because it's also Tim Curry's entrance.
I leave you with some pictures:
Our heroine, Mildred Hubble, aka the Worst Witch:
Ms. Hardbroom, the nasty Potions mistress. I wish I could get a better picture of her that would show her outfit.
Ethel Hallow, the snobby mean girl:
I don't even know which photo to pick for the Grand Wizard. Let's go with... this one:
Also, y'all should visit this snarky site on the movie, which is where I got most of the above photos. It also describes Tim Curry as "looking like a monarch butterfly on mescaline with a cape so grand Liberace would be jealous of it."
I want to say that I thought of the Liberace comparison before I read this. But then again, it's plainly obvious.
This is also not bad.
Oh, how I am glad that he did. I saw this movie only once when I was little, but I loved it. And I never could take the first Harry Potter book seriously because of it. After all, J.K. Rowling basically took the whole thing from this movie (and mayhap the tv series/book series of the same title). The Worst Witch is about an outcast orphan girl with perpetually messy hair who attends a prestigious Witches' Academy somewhere in England. She worries about being able to make it as a Witch and often gets in trouble with the strict, dark and haughty Potion mistress, and the Potion mistress' favorite student: the blonde, bullying, and snooty Ethel Hallow, who likes to taunt our titular witch with her aristocratic family's superiority. The Headmistress of the school is a kindly, maternal old lady with white fluffy hair, who has a liking for the heroine. Despite her disasters in Potions class, the heroine turns out to be quite good at broom-flying after some practice, and manages to be selected for the Broom Formation Flying Team who will put on a show for the Grand Wizard at Halloween. Of course, she will also have to save the entire school from a plot by some evil witches at the same time as impressing the Grand Wizard.
(What JK Rowling didn't get from Worst Witch, she appears to have gotten from Neil Gaiman's Books of Magic.
But I digress.)
Anyway, this movie is fun and awesome, and it has a young Fairuza Balk and Tim Curry as the Grand Wizard. Also, it appears that the most evil thing you can be is an 80s punk/new wave fan. And if you have a Southern accent. That's bad.
The "Evil" witches are shown to be evil by the fact that they wear Cyndi Lauper-like colorful fishnet and tatter outfits, and have bright-pink dyed hair, or green hair gelled up into spikes. The Headmistress' niece, Donna, is criticized by the headmistress for being "too flashy" and too material, and likewise wearing funky 80s fashion. She also happens to talk in amazing slang while snapping gum: "Do you think Big Daddy Wiz will like the rags?" Oh, that Mad Donna.
But if girls having new-wave fun is frowned upon, apparently being the gayest wizard since Liberace is all right if you're Tim Curry. He flies in sporting a ridiculous pink satin cape and proceeds to croon a little Halloween ditty that must be seen (heard?) to be believed. ("Anything can happen on Ha-llo-ween! *Ta-dum* Has anybody seen my tam-bou-rine?")
He also happens to say everything in a hyper-sexual tone of voice that seems entirely innapropriate considering his audience is a bunch of 11 year old girls.
I will attempt to illustrate this with some quotes, italicized to better convey exactly how he delivers the lines: "It's great to be here, with you young witches, on this faaahbulous night. Remember girls, show the world. Let them know it's Hahhhlloween."
"Ohhhhh, Ms. Hhhardbroom... your girls? I lovvve it, Miss Hardbroom. Let's get the show on the road."
"Now, Mildred...have you made any plans for this unexpected holiday?"
"No, Grand Wizard. I suppose I'd better practice my flying!"
"Would you like to practice... with me?"
"With you?!"
"Oh... absolutely."
Seriously, it is like that and more. Oh, and there's a poster of Aladdin Sane-era Bowie in the girls' dormroom if you look closely at the end of part 6 (above). Which you should all watch because it's also Tim Curry's entrance.
I leave you with some pictures:
Our heroine, Mildred Hubble, aka the Worst Witch:
Ms. Hardbroom, the nasty Potions mistress. I wish I could get a better picture of her that would show her outfit.
Ethel Hallow, the snobby mean girl:
I don't even know which photo to pick for the Grand Wizard. Let's go with... this one:
Also, y'all should visit this snarky site on the movie, which is where I got most of the above photos. It also describes Tim Curry as "looking like a monarch butterfly on mescaline with a cape so grand Liberace would be jealous of it."
I want to say that I thought of the Liberace comparison before I read this. But then again, it's plainly obvious.
This is also not bad.