Rating: 
Summary: One of the best movies of all time
Review: I picked up this movie in HMV one day. I was attracted to it mainly because it had Neve Campbell in it and I wanted to see one of her movies. But the main reason was the witchcraft. I love reading anything to do with the subject, and am very into anything mystical or spiritual.
'The Craft' is the tale of a 17-year-old San Francisco girl called Sarah Bailey (played by Robin Tunney). She moves to Los Angeles with her father and his girlfriend and starts school in St. Benedict's, a very christian-orientated school. Sarah has always been able to 'make things happen', and is soon brought to the attention of the three 'bad-girls' of the school - Nancy Downs (BRILLIANTLY played by Fairuza Balk) and her two friends Bonnie (Neve Campbell) and Rochelle (Rachel True). Nancy is emotionally unhinged in a way, a goth girl with not the greatest home situation. Bonnie's upper body is covered in horrific burns that she hides from the others at school, though in reality is extremely pretty. Rochelle is the only coloured girl in an entirely white school, and is the subject of harsh bullying from the popular, blonde and blue-eyed Laura Lizzie (Christine Taylor).
Sarah soon becomes part of the group, and together they are able to accomplish things they never could before - Sarah casts a spell to get the boy she likes Chris Hooker to fall in love with her, Bonnie asks for her scars to heal, Rochelle wants pay-back on Laura, and Nancy wants the higher power, the power of Menon. But soon things start moving too fast for Sarah's liking, and that's when things start going wrong. (BE WARNED, if you have a phobia of creepy-crawlies, like spiders and maggots, and also snakes and scorpions and rats, then be on your guard)
The most outstanding performance in this movie is that of Fairuza Balk, who's outing as the crazy, and slightly evil Nancy is one of the most powerful performances by a young actress I have ever seen. The end scene is one of the most compelling and disturbing scenes she does in the entire movie, and she is not only extremely convincing, but likeable at the same time.
Robin Tunney is good as the troubled, occasionally suicidal Sarah. Neve Campbell and Rachel True also provide pleasing performances, but are outshined by Balk.
This film I would classify as not a full on horror. On the first viewing, there will be a few bits that you jump at, but only on the first viewing, and there are some horror elements in there, but it isn't scary enough to be a proper horror movie. This is more of a late-night movie that a bunch of friends watch at a sleepover. (you CAN'T say that you haven't tried the whole 'light as a feather, stiff as a board' thing! If you haven't, watch the film and then try it)
The movie is really enjoyable and makes the idea of witchcraft seem really exciting and appealing. I suggest it for everyone out there, even if this isn't your normal choice of movie. Just watch it and you'll be pleasantly surprised. And for more atmosphere, watch it with all the lights off and candles everywhere, it's great!
Rating:
Summary: I liked it!!
Review: This was a good movie! Fairuza is HOT as a goth/witch type chick! lol. when i saw that one part where Sarah is dreaming that the other three girls fly through the window after her and start grabbing her, I was just like "in a perfect world" lol. I'd like it! I'd let them take me!
Rating: 
Summary: Christian pagans?
Review: Witches who worship only the moon god Mani but no goddess! And the abundance of crosses - on the walls, earrings etc - make you wonder what type of pagans these witches really are! They use a pentacle for their rituals though - which appear to be a Gardnerian based! Very confusing and not too convincing to a Wiccan!
Story wise, I think it did what all other films on witchcraft have all done - gone for tricks. Flying witches, magic trickery, stereotyped associations with snakes, rats, spiders. Do me a favour! And the director and actors claim they're on the Wiccan's side! I'd hate to see a film that wasn't!!
In the end the girls are immature and don't know what to do with their power. They become a bit power-mad and the rest of the film may as well be "The Excorcist" for all that I care. It didn't frighten me. I much prefer the film "Practial Magic". At least the people there are more sensitive. I lost my sympathy for all four girls in the end. The lady in the shop seemed to be the only one I could relate to.
Rating:
Summary: Fun Facts in DVD
Review: I almost missed the Directors Comments in the dvd. The movie is one of my favorites of this genre, and after reading several books on Wicca, seems to be the most authentic (for a Hollywood movie).
Remember, this is not a step-by-step guide to Witchcraft, but is a very entertaining movie (nothing more) with a "peak" into witchcraft. Get the dvd, and explore all of the options - its' fun!
Rating: 
Summary: In the beginning...
Review: With the incredible success of the television smash hit "Charmed" it seems only fair to remind people of that show's absolute beginning. It was a 1996 film entitled "The Craft" starring Neve Campbell(of "Scream" fame), Rachel True, an utterly gorgeous Robin Tunney in the lead role, and a fantastic casting choice of Fairuza Balk as a witch who eventually embraces the darkside of her art. This film was a pleasant surprise with some good acting, a plausible yet magical storyline which focuses almost entirely on the lives of four outsiders who find each other through "The Craft" of illusion and glamour. This isn't a scary film at all, unless you dislike snakes, bugs, worms, rats, etc. For that matter, a story like this, in retrospect, is an excellent idea for a television program. It works better in such a medium, but for the most part, it works here as well. This film is an essential pick-up for fans of the show "Charmed" and for anyone who celebrates "Girl Power." (pun intended) This is an enjoyable yarn that is, thanks to "Charmed," destined for Cult film status.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining movie
Review: Before Neve Campbell blew up with the "Scream" trilogy, Neve was in the modest hit "The Craft". It is my favorite modern teen flick movies. Robin Tunney plays the protaganist Sarah Bailey. She moves to California with her father and stepmother. She enrolls in a Catholic high school where she meets up with trouble in the form of Skeet Ulrich, Fairuka Balk, Neve Campbell and Rachel True. Everything starts out swimmingly with Skeet, Fairuka, Neve, and Rachel's characters Chris, Nancy, Bonnie, and Rochelle but it quickly takes a downturn when Sarah, Nancy, Bonnie, and Rochelle get way over their heads into witchcraft. Sure the portrayal of wicca is unrealistic but this is a movie, not a documentary. Each of the girls make a wish to menlo who is supposedly to be a power bigger than God. Well the girls gets their wishes. Unfortunately the wishes turns out to be more than what the girls bargained for. Eventually the four really gets in over their heads when they decided to invoke menlo. All heck breaks loose when Sarah realizes what started out as just having fun casting harmless spells has turned into something darker and more insidious with her three friends who are now corrupt with power. The movie may not be perfect with the over the top special effects and writing in general but I still love watching this movie. I do think it is one of those films that translated better in the theater than on dvd/video.
Rating:
Summary: Black Magic Women
Review: There's a certain guilty-pleasure quality to watching this movie about a group of angst-ridden teen girls who just happen to be witches. Of course, anyone who remembers high school as a horrible experience will get a kick out of watching the girls take their revenge on everyone who has wronged them. Sounds like 'Carrie', doesn't it? It's far from it.
Robin Tunney plays the new girl in school who falls into the group of witches. At first, she enjoys the experience and is mesmerized by what they collectively can do with their powers, but then changes her mind when the head witch, played by Fairuza Balk begins to use the powers for more evil purposes. This movie was part of the new wave of teen horror beginning in 1996, and it is better than most of the movies that came after 'Scream' became such a hit. Very enjoyable for horror or supernatural fans, though you may hate yourself in the morning.
Rating:
Summary: A movie "witch" is very entertaining!
Review: Yesterday I watched the craft and I enjoyed it quite a lot. It is a very different movie with an unusual storyline that will not make you bored.
`The Craft' starts off with Sarah, a girl who after moving into a new town and attending a new school befriends a group of three witches (Nancy, Rochelle and Bonnie). The four of them join together and conjure up spells to invoke the powers of a spirit named `Manon', in order to obtain supernatural powers so that they can rid of all the problems that they are facing. While they have fun in the beginning, Sarah later realizes that the other three, especially Nancy, are abusing their new powers, and tries to get out of the circle. Will she be able to escape or face the horrors that the others have in store for her?
`The Craft' is a basic `be careful what you wish for' movie. The special effects are good in this movie. Some of the scenes are very gory (one scene towards the end of the movie with all the insects crawling everywhere) while other scenes provide an eerie atmosphere to the whole movie. The movie is well paced and doesn't lag anywhere.
From the cast, I think Fairuza Balk acted the best as Nancy Downs. While I absolutely loved her character in movies like `The Waterboy' and `Almost Famous', I despised her character in this movie, which proves what a talented actress she is. Robin Tunney, Rachel True and Neve Campbell act well for their roles. The soundtrack really fit well to the movie.
All in all, this is a very different movie which will appeal to anyone having a taste for teen/horror movies.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but could have been much better
Review: Craft is basically a pseudo horror picture released almost 8 years ago. It has aged pretty well, considering the era it came out in. While it is very easy to dismiss this film as just another teen rebellion/girl power flict very popular at the time, doing so would be a misservice to the movie.
For what it is worth, Craft doesn't have a strong plot, as a matter of fact it is very predictable. i can honestly say, that at least 20 minutes into the film, you can tell how this whole thing is going to play out. The plot is weak, but the main drawing to the film is the character developement.
Basically the formula is simple, Craft is about the main character Sarah, a fairly streotypical brunette, who is both quiet and shy and somewhat introverted. Sarah is a natural witch, although she doesn't seem to be able to control her powers. When she arrives at her new school in L.A. (by way of San Fran), she runs into many jerks, mainly a goofy football player (Skeet Ulrich). This makes her fall into a group of girls as socially incompetent as she is.
The four girls consist of :Rachel (Racheal True), she is apparently a black girl in an all white school, who is sometimes harassed by a girl name Laura, who lookes EXACTLY like Marsha Brady. Then there is Bonnie ( Neve Cambell), who has grotesque burn scars all over her body, she is basically shy and soft spoken. And the there is Nancy ( Fairuza Balk), who is your token goth, and all around mad lady with tons of baggage and problems.
To say the least, the interaction between Sarah and the 3 other girls is pretty good. The best scenes are when they are friends and where they all just laugh and make jokes. These scene are almost the opposite of most of the themes you see in modern teen flicks. Plus none of these girls act very modern (with Nancy being the exception). Sarah acts someone mysterious and series, but when she is around the football player, she acts like a giddy school girl who would fit right in on Happy Days or Patty Duke. The same goes for Bonnie and Rachel. But the point is, you start to actually like the chracters, because they are so adorable. Despite the fact they are using witchcraft for selfish reasns, the reasons are all juvenille and stem from vanity and simple high school rivalries. Nancy is really the only character with real problems.
The film goes astray as all of the characters fall out, and the plot starts to feel rushed. The whole Nancy and Co. vs Sarah things is explain, but it is very contrived. one minute they are having slumber parties, and the next they are trying to kill Sarah. It really don't make much sense. But what holds the movie together is...
Fairuza Balk and her Nancy character. She certainly looked like a Goth, but no goth I have ever met in real life or seen on film is as cool as her. Where most goths seem to have a "dead" personality, and seem pessimistic, Nancy is the opposite of that. She makes all sorts of goofy expressions, make silly gestures, and doesn't mind screaming to the top of her lungs every now and then. And she plays an awesome villian. The scene where she walks on water is cliche, but Fairuza made the whole things seem cool.
One last note, i am not a religious person, and I definitely don't practice paganism, but i must commend the screenwriter for his treament of the magic used in this film. Nothing her seemed sensationalized. As a matter of fact, the craft the girls are using is presented as some indifferent force, and they way they are using it is the main evil here.
All in all, this movie is great. It steers clear of gen-X streotypes, and surprisingly from Goth streotypes as well. The only problem here is a plot and the so- so character development (which could have been much better). I would probably enjoy this story better if it were a novel, instead of some rushed holywood film. Too much here seems rushed, which makes this review a 3.
Rating:
Summary: These Girls Know Their Rites!
Review: Sarah Bailey (Robin Tunney) is the new kid in town, but even under the best of circumstances she has never been accepted by the popular crowd. At her new school, she falls in with a trio of other female misfits (Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, and Rachel True) who, it so happens, are trying to learn witchcraft and form their own little coven. When Sarah joins them to make it a quartet, they slowly develop multifold preternatural powers and learn how to focus and use them. With such abilities literally at their fingertips, it's not too long until the little coven, initially formed for self-protection and companionship, becomes an instrument for personal gain and revenge. Sarah soon realizes that one of her friends is evil to the core, and fearful of what THAT one may do with the group's newfound powers, she decides it's best to resign from the coven and thereby weaken the magic abilities of the others. But the coven has different plans, particularly regarding Sarah....The sleeper hit THE CRAFT (1996) could've easily been played for camp, but it is instead a story of modern urban witchcraft that is both literate and emotionally powerful. The success of the film is due to Peter Filardi and Andrew Fleming's tight, well-written script, excellent direction from Fleming, and outstanding acting from principals Tunney, Balk, Campbell, and True. The supernatural elements of the story are handled carefully and earnestly, and witchcraft or the belief in it is never ridiculed or treated derisively. This keeps the tone of the film somewhat dark and edgy, which in turn creates an uneasy, spooky atmosphere that cues the audience to the fact that this is a serious horror film. Fleming wisely keeps the special FX to a minimum until the story's climax on the final reel, and he instead emphasizes the relationships in this group of dysfunctional, angst-ridden girls, well knowing that the primary target audience--to wit, teenagers--will easily relate to these characters and their normal desires and fears. The Special Edition DVD from Columbia/Tri-Star offers THE CRAFT in anamorphic widescreen at its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The digital transfer is very good, with minimal filmic or digital artifacts. The disc also features an informative commentary with director Andrew Fleming, 2 featurettes, deleted scenes, and more. THE CRAFT is a cool horror film that most fans of the genre will enjoy, and the very reasonable price makes it easy for fans to add this DVD to their collections.
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