. . . to the Bette Davis from OF HUMAN BONDAGE (1934), and returning home after 60 minutes to a Mom who's morphed into the Bette Davis of HUSH, HUSH, SWEET CHARLOTTE (1964). This is exactly what happens to Katherine Levy in this little-known horror movie released in the late 1900s. Though Ms. Levy's character has spent the intervening three decades (identical to the time span between BONDAGE and HUSH) sequestered in some sort of suspended animation under the nose of a nine-foot dragonfly orbiting earth in an UFO (at least in Alternate Ending #2), The Earth Has NOT Stood Still. Nearly half a century of chain-smoked coffin nails has reduced Bette's version of "Mom Aylwood" into a saggy baggy caricature of her former Sadomasochistic BONDAGE self. Any of the actors Betty Dissed in the 1930s who survived long enough to view THE WATCHER IN THE WOODS surely enjoyed "the last laugh" spying Betty Big Eyes portraying an apparent Rodent Queen in the spectacularly cheesy fright fest. Beyond witnessing Ms. Davis' physical demise, WATCHER's main takeaway is that "Karen" spelled backwards is "Nerak."

When a family moves to a country home, the young girls experience strange happenings that have a link to an occult event years past.I wasn't really aware of this film until Rue Morgue magazine did a focus on it. And wow, it really deserves a wider audience. John Hough is a great director; his "Hell House" is one of my all-time favorites. Here, working more in a family-friendly way, he still manages to terrify.Although the older sister is a terrible actress, at least when she is trying to be emotional, the movie as a whole stands up as creepy and a decent mystery. You can never go wrong with those films where kids know more about what is going on than their parents do.

Who is the watcher the woods? That's the question put forth by the intriguing and often overlooked film "The Watcher in the Woods". Directed by John Hough, it's a movie from Disney's glory years and while it may not be quite as good as say "Escape to Witch Mountain"-also directed by Hough-the film does manage to weave a story that includes mystery, suspense, and magic that only the old school Disney can produce. In other words, it's the type of movie Disney hasn't made in years. Set in the seemly untouched English country side-a land rife with tales of strange occurrences-the story begins when Jan Curtis (the underrated Lynn-Holly Johnson) and her family move into large, old house owned by a reclusive woman named Mrs. Aylwood (the legendary Bette Davis). It doesn't take long for Jan and her little sister (the adorable Kyle Richards from "Halloween" and who guest stared many times on "Little House on the Prarie" ) to realize that there are some strange forces at work and it all leads back to the strange disappearance of Mrs. Aylwood's daughter, Karen. What happened to Karen during that strange ritual carried out by her friends? Is Karen trapped somehow, somewhere? Is she the watcher in the woods or is it, something else? And what does all this have to do with the upcoming equinox? It's these questions and the effective techniques used by the filmmakers that make "The Watcher" what it is. Granted, the movie does have its faults, such as the fact that Jan's dad (the charming David McCallum) seems to disappear halfway through the film and a few inconsistencies with the story ( I suspect this may be due to having to re shoot new endings after the original failed to please target audiences. You can see the original endings on the DVD). But the film more than makes up for this with the chemistry between Johnson and Richards, the performance of the late, great Bette Davis who ,although in her seventies at this point, still had it as well as effective music that manages to be both haunting and beautiful. It's a type of movie that you wish Disney still made. Sure, every now and then Disney might turn out a good one like "Wreck It Ralph"(when they're not buying every entertainment franchise known to man!). But there can be no question that the glory days of rich story telling from Disney are over, probably forever now that the accountants run the show. Luckily, the movie is on DVD-the only way you can see it now a days since I've never seen it on TV before-so I implore you find it and seek it out the answers to "The Watcher in the Woods". Also starring Carroll Baker.

when Disney made 'WITW', they were investigating the genres of Sci Fi and horror, and like the studio's other attempts, 'Something Wicked', 'The Black Hole' and 'Tron', this was all relatively new for them. it's always been asserted that most of these attempts failed but i disagree. i think they are some of the most strikingly original ventures in the Burbank studio's history.the most criticized of these films is 'Watcher'. because of the difficulty in approaching the ending it's been said the whole film is a muddle. to the contrary it's unique and original as well as being true to the Disney family formula despite it's spooky premise. and it's very well directed by Disney director John Hough who directed the original 'Witch Mountain' films.'WITW' is a good, eerie supernatural thriller that is suitable for the whole family. there is no sex, violence or profanity. it is also filled with Disney's particular brand of imagination.interesting note; the movie features some motocross sequences for young people. who would've ever figured they had motocross in England.