Witch Hunt (1994 film)

Witch Hunt is a 1994 HBO fantasy detective television film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Dennis Hopper[1] and Eric Bogosian.[2] The film, written by Joseph Dougherty,[3] is a sequel to the 1991 film Cast a Deadly Spell, with Hopper playing private detective H. Phillip Lovecraft and replacing Fred Ward. Additionally, many characters have different backstories than in Cast a Deadly Spell. For example, Lovecraft refuses to use magic in Cast a Deadly Spell on principle, but in Witch Hunt he refuses because of a bad experience which he has had. The original music score was composed by Angelo Badalamenti.[3]

This article is about the 1994 film. For the 2019 film, see Witch Hunt (2019 film).
Witch Hunt
Genre
  • Crime
  • Fantasy
  • Mystery
Written byJoseph Dougherty
Directed byPaul Schrader
Starring
Music byAngelo Badalamenti
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producerJoseph Dougherty (co-executive producer)
Producers
CinematographyJean-Yves Escoffier
EditorKristina Boden
Running time100 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkHBO
Picture formatColor
Audio formatDolby SR
Original release
  • December 10, 1994 (1994-12-10)

Plot

The film takes place in a fictionalized version of Los Angeles where magic is real, monsters and mythical beasts stalk the back alleys, zombies are used as cheap labor, and everyone—except hardboiled private investigator H. Philip Lovecraft (Hopper)—uses magic every day. Yet, cars, telephones and other modern technology also exist in this world. The year is 1953, at the beginning of the Second Red Scare. In this universe, magic is substituted for communism and the McCarthy-esque proceedings are being run by Senator Larson Crockett (Bogosian).

Lovecraft is hired by film star Kim Hudson (Miller) to dig up dirt on her husband, producer N.J. Gotlieb (Rosenberg), who is about to replace her on his latest film with a young starlet who he may be having an affair with. Lovecraft gains entry to the film studio with the help of practicing witch Hypolita Kropotkin (Ralph), his friend and landlady who is working for the studio.

Lovecraft encounters Finn Macha (Sands), a warlock and former private investigator with whom he had once crossed paths. When Gotlieb is murdered by magic, Senator Crockett uses the crime to make Kropotkin a scapegoat for use in his Anti-Magic crusade. Crockett uses newly-passed Congressional legislation to have her sentenced to death by public burning.

Lovecraft must now not only save Kropotkin and uncover the real murderer, the motive behind the murder and the secrets Kim Hudson is hiding, but also confront the demons in his own past...a past that includes Finn Macha and the reason why Lovecraft will not use magic.

Cast

References
  1. "Dennis Hopper filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-11-10.
  2. "Eric Bogosian filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-12-27.
  3. "Witch Hunt credits". The New York Times.
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