Hi, doll.
I was hoping to send this Ruby Report out a few days ago. Before writing about my favorite witch movies, though, I figured I should revisit them for posterity. I’m glad I did, because as a 50something single, child-free woman—you know, one of those menopausal cat ladies whom Vance has deemed unworthy of the vote—some of these films landed differently.
Consider Hocus Pocus (1993). Widely upheld as a cult classic, the appeal of its cast is undeniable: Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy, a snaggle-toothed Bette Midler, and Frank and Penny Marshall. The appeal is so great that I don’t hold the lousy production values and Swiss cheese screenplay against this tale of snarling Salem witches who suck the life force from children. Ditto for the much-revered if one-note 1990 adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Witches, which stars Angelica Huston as an altruistic fashion plate who’s secretly a bald, beaky coven leader who, yep, preys upon kids.
But let’s face it. The whole trope in which middle-aged unattached women are portrayed as hideous hags who destroy children basically demonizes female independence under the guise of occult kitsch. Ditto for Ryan Murphy’s hackneyed portrayal of witches—power-hungry if gorgeously clad shrews who throw each other under busses in their quest for dominance.
Call me the grinch who stole Halloween, but such misogynist propaganda is ill-advised in our current climate.
Real witches draw peacefully and powerfully upon the rhythms of nature and the heavens. They come in all ages, sizes, gender presentations, and races, and are invariably beautiful because they glow with the light of their higher selves. They align with the divine feminine, in other words, which no doubt is why they get such a bad rap in patriarchal culture.
In the last Ruby Report, I discussed Lilith, the female archetype who openly defies oppressive hierarchies. Throughout history, she has represented untamed power tapped from all the entities banished from the light of day— everything white supremacist heteropatriarchy unwisely tamps down.
Witches are Lilith 101.
The fascists clamoring to take over this land are keen to extinguish Lilith by any means necessary. So this year I am platforming her wherever possible. Not all the films listed below have infallible messaging, but they do celebrate Lilith magic with lavish design and sly humor.
With respect to Emma Goldman: If it doesn’t have style, it’s not my revolution.
Before diving into this listicle, a reminder that Samhain (10/31-11/1) is the most important witch holiday of the year. Over the next few days I’ll post more about this festival. For now, the ancestors and guides are uncommonly keen to help from the other side. To activate a contained, constructive connection with them, book a reading; I’m extending office hours to make the most of this magic.
Practical Magic (1998)
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