''Little Witches'' is a 1996 Canadian-American horror film directed by Jane Simpson and written by Brian DiMuccio and Dino Vindeni. It has a similar plot to '' The Craft'' and released in the same year, though ''Little Witches'' had a much smaller budget.

Plot

Faith Ferguson (Mimi Rose) is a relatively shy but intelligent teenager who is heartbroken when her mother informs her that she must spend Easter break at her Catholic girls' school as opposed to coming home. She's roomed with the rebellious Jamie (

Sheeri Rappaport Sheeri Rappaport (born October 27, 1977) is an American actress. She is most famous for portraying lab technician Mandy Webster on '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''. Rappaport made her television debut with a guest role on ''Clarissa Explains I ...

), who initially scandalizes Faith with her wild antics. Despite her initial misgivings, Faith finds herself bonding slightly with Jamie and the four other teen misfits that had to remain behind - Erica, Gina, Nicole, and Kelsey. The group is soon intrigued when construction work on the school's church uncovers a Satanic temple containing the mummified remains of several schoolgirls believed to have gone missing almost a hundred years ago. The girls venture into the temple one night while everyone is asleep and they discover an ancient book written in Latin. Faith is fluent in Latin and translates the book, which outlines a spell that will summon a demon from the pits of hell. Jamie and some of the other girls are eager to practice the spell, but Faith is reticent due to the spell requiring a virgin sacrifice - especially after learning that the schoolgirls were murdered by a guardian devoted to keeping the spell from being cast. This reluctance, along with her interactions with a handsome construction worker named Daniel (Tommy Stork), helps alienate her from Jamie, who was somewhat attracted to him. Things grow more tense when the teens return to the hidden room and discover that there is still a guardian around, as the room was covered in graffiti that warned them that summoning the demon would lead to their deaths. Because Faith has refused to help translate the rest of the book, Jamie decides to play a cruel trick on her by inviting Daniel to their room and making it appear as if he was trying to rape her. The girls' young schoolteacher, Sister Sherilyn ( Jennifer Rubin), provides Faith with some guidance and has her bring meals to Mother Clodah (

Zelda Rubinstein Zelda May Rubinstein (May 28, 1933 – January 27, 2010) was an American actress and human rights activist, known as eccentric medium (spirituality), medium Tangina Barrons in the Poltergeist (film series), ''Poltergeist'' film series. Playing "Gi ...

), a strange nun bearing a distinctive birthmark on her face. This ends up being to Faith's benefit, as she manages to avoid falling under one of Jamie's spells by praying with Mother Clodah. Unfortunately the encounter also ends with Mother Clodah's death due to Jamie poisoning her meal, believing Mother Clodah to be the guardian. Jamie, who has taught herself to read Latin due to Faith's refusal to translate, proceeds with the spell as planned. The movie implies that the teens will use Faith as a sacrifice due to her virginal nature, but Jamie ends up using Daniel instead after she learns that he is also a virgin. Horrified that they are moving forward with the spell, Faith receives help from Sister Sherilyn, who reveals that she is the guardian. They manage to stop the ceremony in time to save Daniel, but at the cost of the lives of Jamie and all of the other girls involved with the spell.

Cast

*Mimi Rose — Faith Ferguson (as Mimi Reichmeister) *

— Jamie * Jennifer Rubin — Sister Sherilyn *

Jack Nance Marvin John Nance (December 21, 1943 – December 30, 1996), known professionally as Jack Nance, was an American actor. A longtime collaborator of filmmaker David Lynch, Nance portrayed the lead in Lynch's directorial film debut ''Eraserhead'' (1 ...

— Father Michael *

— Mother Clodah *

Eric Pierpoint Eric Pierpoint (born November 18, 1950) is an American actor and author. He is perhaps best known for his role as George Francisco on Fox Network's ''Alien Nation (TV series), Alien Nation''. He has also notably appeared on each of the first fo ...

— Sheriff Gordon *

Clea DuVall Clea Helen D'Etienne DuVall (born September 25, 1977) is an American actress, writer, producer, and director. She is known for her appearances in the films ''The Faculty'' (1998), '' She's All That''; '' But I'm a Cheerleader''; ''Girl, Interrup ...

— Kelsey (DuVall's film debut) *Tommy Stork as Daniel

Reception

Reception for ''Little Witches'' was largely negative, with a Rovi reviewer panning the film. The ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago ...

'' commented that the film was full of cliches, while ''

The Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and a ...

'' named it one of the "worst videos of 1996". JoBlo praised the acting for Rappaport while panning the film overall.

References

External links

* * {{AllMovie title, 162164, Little Witches 1996 films 1996 independent films 1990s supernatural horror films 1990s teen horror films American independent films American supernatural horror films American teen horror films Films about Satanism Canadian supernatural horror films Canadian teen films English-language Canadian films Films shot in California Films about witchcraft 1990s English-language films 1990s American films 1990s Canadian films