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Disney's 1983 adaptation of Ray Bradbury's novel Something Wicked This Way Comes is one of the greatest all-ages horror films of all time. Hauntingly beautiful and utterly heartbreaking, its story about boys navigating the thorny path to manhood is as timeless as any fairy tale. It also holds special promise for modern viewers with its sophisticated commentary on toxic masculinity. The still-stunning Halloween classic has not been widely available for home viewing, and it would be an excellent addition to Disney Plus.

The novel had a long, hard road from the printed page to the silver screen. The film's troubled production history, full of controversial figures and corporate intrigue, is almost as strange as Bradbury's original tale. The stops and starts along the way damaged its momentum, and its public reception was mixed at best. However, a fresh look at Something Wicked This Way Comes reveals a mature, inventive horror...

Seth Grahame-Smith is a very busy man. Not only has he recently completed the Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter novel sequel 'The Last American Vampire', he has a ton of screenplays on his plate that include Beetlejuice 2, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Stephen King's It. He is also adapting Ray Bradbury's novel Something Wicked This Way Comes, which was turned into a cult classic back in 1983. His version, though, is going to be slightly different.

Seth Grahame-Smith is setting his Something Wicked This Way Comes in the 80s, whereas the original was set in the 30s. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, he teased that the movie will feel like one of Steven Spielberg's earlier efforts, comparing it to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and The Goonies.

"I can't help but think of this in sort of Amblin terms. Boys riding bikes, out on their own, exploring and...

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Directed by Jack Clayton

Written by Ray Bradbury

Starring Jason Robards, Jonathan Pryce, Pam Grier, Diane Ladd

Both before and after watching it, I’m stymied by Something Wicked This Way Comes. During our podcast with The Av Club’s Zack Handlen, Mike asked me why I chose this movie to discuss now as opposed to years down the line, and whether or not I felt like this was a “Disney” movie. I’ve talked in this column before about what that latter concept even means. What makes a Disney movie “Disney”? If there is some immutable formula, or a series of ingredients that need to appear, then you may have to look hard for how they show up in Something Wicked This Way Comes. I don’t know that the ingredients are totally absent, but if you look at the film’s plot synopsis by itself,...