Blu-ray Review: ‘The Craft: Legacy’

You may not be familiar with the 1996 film The Craft, and this film serves as a sequel, so I wanted to give a recap of that film quickly. 

New girl Sarah moves to a new town and is drawn to a group of girls that turn out to be a coven of witches (she has powers herself, thus why she is drawn). The girls are all considered outcasts with various issues; racial tensions, skin conditions, poverty, and emotional issues. 

When the four are together, they get a level of power they could never achieve on their own. They use their new powers to change their lives and generally get revenge on those they believe have wronged them. This leads to negative consequences and the powers taking over the girls’ lives and changing them in ways they would not have predicted. It’s up to Sarah to stop the trend and try to right everything. There is a lesson to using powers to better your own life or gain power.

This sequel diverges from the original in that it is written more for the times in which we now live. It has a familiar story with a new girl Lily arriving in a new town (her mom is moving in with her boyfriend Adam), and she comes upon a coven of witches that take her into their coven. 

We meet them, they are again considered outcasts, and at school, Lily has an incident the first day that makes her a target for bullies, and the coven takes her in before they discover she has powers. Now that there are four of them, they can unlock their abilities and are very excited about what they can now do. They face a shared threat and must come together with their powers to defeat it. This is where the story diverges from the original. 

There is a focus on the issues of our time. Bullies play a prominent role. Adam (played by David Duchovny) is a masculine motivational speaker that pushes older gender role norms and is ultimately confronted, and worries about sexuality are a focus among students.

In a way, this is different. It is not in line with the original; however, do we just want a remake of the original set in modern times? I don’t think so. Society evolves, and films are often a reflection of that. At times, the film is a bit afterschool special with coming of age topics and such, but I think it was trying to move into a more positive area. The story is less about the traps of sudden power and more about being a support group for each other. It is considerably lighter than the original. 

If I were to ding this film, it would be on character development. The story is clearly about Lily with little development of the other girls (instead of seeing all their stories and growth in the original). The film does leave an opening for another installation, so maybe we will see it there.

The release has a crisp 1080p video presentation in 2.39:1. The images are clean and clear. The tones are all nice, and skin tones look realistic. The set designs are well-done and look great. The contrasts are sharp and look pleasing to the eyes. Perhaps most importantly, the special effects merge cleanly with the practical shots in a seamless fashion. It lends to a nice overall look. 

The film comes with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track with dialogue being the primary sound, which comes through crisp and clear without being interrupted by any competing sounds. The background noises and effects are well placed to add to the mood of the film.  

Special Features

Franchise Legacy: A nearly three-minute look at the impact the first film had on culture and individuals in the cast and crew.

Powerful Story, Magical Director: A three-minute featurette in which the cast and crew take you through the general setup of the story.

Extended & Alternate Scenes: Nearly twelve minutes of unused footage with an introduction from Writer and Director Zoe Lister-Jones.

Overall, The Craft: Legacy is a nice addition to the series. It is not as dark but also speaks to the times in which we live while paying homage to the original.

The Craft: Legacy is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital from Sony Home Pictures Entertainment