Something Wicked This Way Comes

"What would you give a man who could make your deepest dream come true?"

1983 1h 35m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

🍅

63%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

6.7

IMDB

★6.5TMDB · 220🍅63%Rotten Tomatoes●68Metacritic★6.7IMDB · 11,417

FantasyMysteryHorror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In a small American town, a diabolical circus arrives, granting wishes for the townsfolk, but twisted as only the esteemed Mr. Dark can make them. Can two young boys overcome the worst the devil himself can deal out?

“What would you give a man who could make your deepest dream come true?”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Jason Robards
Charles Halloway
Jonathan Pryce
Mr. Dark
Diane Ladd
Mrs. Nightshade
Royal Dano
Tom Fury
Vidal Peterson
Will Halloway
Shawn Carson
Jim Nightshade
Mary Grace Canfield
Miss Foley
Richard Davalos
Mr. Crosetti

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jack Clayton
Writers: Ray Bradbury
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 42% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

43 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jack Clayton, shot by Stephen H. Burum. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Horner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Barry Mark Gordon shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Jason Robards and Jonathan Pryce and Diane Ladd carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "What would you give a man who could make your deepest dream come true?".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0086336 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jack Clayton directs. Stephen H. Burum behind the camera. James Horner scores. Barry Mark Gordon cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 42% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
243 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Jack Clayton, shot by Stephen H. Burum. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by James Horner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Barry Mark Gordon shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Jason Robards and Jonathan Pryce and Diane Ladd carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "What would you give a man who could make your deepest dream come true?".
8IMDB entry: tt0086336 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 20 themes, including "witch", "dreams", "based on novel or book", "elephant".

The technical file

Cinematography: Stephen H. Burum
Original score: James Horner
Editing: Barry Mark Gordon
Production design: Richard Macdonald
Costume design: Ruth Myers
Runtime: 95 min · 1h 35m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $20,000,000
Box office: $8,400,000
Return: 42% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
Rotten Tomatoes: 63% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 68/100
IMDB rating: 6.7/10 · 11,417 votes
MPAA: PG

Awards

2 wins & 7 nominations total

Also by

Jack Clayton

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2019-10-13
★ 7/10
By the pricking of my thumbs... Beset by production issues, Disney being horrified by the horror of the piece and etc, Something Wicked This Way Comes proved to be a most divisive picture. Yet it's actually a spooky family friendly horror yarn. Plot sees the Pandemonium Carnival roll into a small American town and mysteriously grant the residents their wishes. Of course it's a "too good to be true" set up, and after two young boys discover the carnival's secrets, they come under threat from the owner, Mr. Dark (Jonathan Pryce deliciously sinister). Directed by Jack Clayton (The Innocents) and photographed by Stephen H. Burum, pic is far darker than what Disney envisaged at the outset. Missing the crux of Bradbury's literary bent, the makers do however put forward a thoughtful and atmospheric story, one that looks and sounds terrific with its ethereal beats. It's a crafty puritan bad dream, where although it's true to say that the allegories and message at the core are driven hard, it still a devilish blend of horror and whimsical wonder. 7/10
r96sk2020-09-15
★ 7/10
It might not be as great as it could've been, but I did enjoy watching <em>'Something Wicked This Way Comes'</em>. Jonathan Pryce definitely carries events as Mr. Dark, who is a character that suits him very nicely. I'm a fan of Pryce from other films, so it's little surprise that I like him here. Jason Robards is good too, if a little muttered throughout. The child actors, meanwhile, are passable. The premise is filled with intrigue, it doesn't quite deliver on a grand scale and yet I still felt suitably entertained. The film is shot quite neatly, the main town in particular looks pleasant. Good, admittedly mostly thanks to Pryce.
Wuchak2022-05-28
★ 5/10
Something Slow & Dull This Way Comes In 1932, a mysterious carnival comes to an Illinois town where weird things start happening and people strangely go missing. Jason Robards plays a librarian while Jonathan Pryce is on hand as the shadowy head of the carnival “Something Wicked This Way Comes” (1983) is spooky fantasy written by Ray Bradbury (based on his book). The studio, Disney, wasn’t happy with director Jack Clayton’s original cut and so took it out of his hands and undertook expensive reshoots, reediting and rescoring, plus adding a narration. I was expecting to love this movie since I favor flicks set in carnivals or circuses, like “Water for Elephants” (2011), "Berserk!" (1967), "Circus of Horrors” (1960) and “Funhouse” (1981) — even films like "The Greatest Show on Earth" (1952) and "Roustabout" (1964). Unfortunately, I was let down. Everything is here for a magical picture, but I guess too many cooks spoil the broth. The pace is overly slow and the film never recovers. It doesn’t help that the bulk of it was shot on Disney’s town set in Burbank, which elicits a low-rent vibe. Sure, the concept is great, Mr. Dark is an intriguing character, the Dust Witch is darkly beautiful (Pam Grier) and some of the weird happenings are well done, yet they don’t add up to a compelling story. Even the last act drops the ball with a talky sequence in the library, followed by an equally boring sequence in a mirror maze. The explosive close is impressive, but it’s too little too late. “Needful Things” (1993) wasn’t exactly great, yet it took similar material and made a more entertaining movie. For a superior spooky Disney flick from the early 80s check out the original version of “The Watcher in the Woods” (1980), I’m talking about the version that includes the titular skeletal-insectoid entity at the end (available on Youtube as a “fan edit”). The film runs 1 hour, 35 minutes, and was shot at Disney’s Golden Oak Ranch (the carnival scenes), which is a 20-minute drive north of Hollywood, as well as the Disney back lot in Burbank (the town set), with establishing shots done in Vermont (Morrisville and Waterville). GRADE: C