Castle Vanian Halloween Special: Wicked Witches: Warlock (1989)

There were a lot of movies in the witch category to choose from. How did Warlock beat out so many other movies?

Because it’s actually a good movie.

That’s a bit unfair. There were a lot of good movies on there…

Eh. There are some good witch movies from yesteryear but to be entertaining and nervy, there aren’t that many.

It’s got some late 80s/early 90s CGI going on… does that affect the overall quality?

It does date it. The scenes where the warlock is flying does make it very ropey, in particular. The CGI isn’t bad enough to ruin the film, it’s just noticeable.

How about a quick synopsis?

A warlock has been summoned through time to put the Devil’s Grand Grimoire back together. A man who he’s wronged follows him to the future to stop him from causing the uncreation.

Any favourite moments or scenes?

There were a few, yeah. I really liked the scene where Kassandra’s (Lori Singer) hammering the nails into the Warlock’s footprints and he’s feeling it like a voodoo doll. Then, she finds where he’s landed facedown and drives a nail into that.

The dialogue is kind of a weird mixture of late 80s So-Cal and 17^th Century magic. Do the clashing styles make Warlock difficult to watch?

No, not really. Because he’s travelled back in time, you have to have that conflict in the language. It doesn’t clash so much as remind you of how out of place Redferne (Richard E Grant) and the Warlock (JulianSands) are.

Since we’re talking about the time… I noticed that the cops were more interested in Kassandra’s roommate being gay than finding his killer. Was that a common attitude at the time?

Oh, boy. Yeah, it was. I can speak from personal experience when I say it was. I had a job interview for the Forces, and they didn’t give a shit how well I could do the job, all they cared about was whether or not I was gay.

There are a couple of brilliant actors in Julian Sands and Richard E. Grant. What do you think about their performances and the acting in general?

I think it was one of the first movies I saw Julian Sands and Richard E Grant in. The acting is a bit over the top but it’s enjoyable. They’re very different actors, one English and one Scottish, but they’re both very good.

I thought the ending was incredibly sad. What did you think?

I guess it was, yeah, but it had to be. Redferne had to go back to his time and Kassandra had to stay in hers. It was a little frustrating, though, because they never explained how Redferne managed to travel back and forth in time.

What about the sequels?

Warlock 2: The Exiled wasn’t bad. That one had Julian Sands in it. The third one, Warlock 3: The End of Innocence, had someone else in it. That change in main villain meant it was never going to be as good.