Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost
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| Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost | |
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 Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost DVD cover |
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| Directed by | Jim Stenstrum |
| Produced by | Davis Doi Joseph Barbara William Hanna |
| Written by | Rick Copp David A. Goodman |
| Starring | Scott Innes Frank Welker Mary Kay Bergman B. J. Ward Jennifer Hale Peter Renaday Tim Curry |
| Music by | Louis Febre |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Home Video |
| Release date(s) | October 5, 1999 |
| Running time | 70 minutes |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998) |
| Followed by | Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders (2000) |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost is the second of a series of direct-to-video animated films based upon the Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was released on October 5, 1999, and it was produced by Warner Bros. Animation, though it featured a logo for Hanna-Barbera Cartoons at the end. The Mystery, Inc. gang, which includes Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, Fred, Daphne and Velma, travel to a New England town called Oakhaven after being invited by horror writer Ben Ravencroft.
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[edit] Plot
The Mystery, Inc. gang is invited by horror writer Ben Ravencroft (voiced by Tim Curry) to his home town of Oakhaven. When they get to Oakhaven, they find out that the town is haunted by the ghost of a witch. Ben Ravencroft believes that the ghost is that of his ancestor Sarah Ravencroft, who was persecuted by the town members hundreds of years ago as a witch. Ben wants the gang to help him clear Sarah's name after years of being in accusation.
The gang meets a goth girl rock band named the Hex Girls during their investigation, comprised of Luna (voiced by Kimberly Brooks), Dusk (voiced by Jane Wiedlin), and Thorn (voiced by Jennifer Hale). These characters would later reapear in the 2003 Scooby-Doo direct to video film Scooby-Doo and the Legend of the Vampire and "The Vampire Strikes Back" episode of What's New, Scooby-Doo?.
The first two-thirds of the film play out like a regular Scooby-Doo cartoon, with the gang checking out clues & proving that the "ghost" it was just a person in a mask. They deduct that the "ghost" is just a publicity stunt set up by the mayor and some of the townspeople. During the third act, however, it turns out that Ben was lying and his ancestor really was a witch. The ghost of Sara Ravencroft is brought from the netherworld by Ben, and it turns out that only Thorn, because of her Wiccan heritage, can stop the ghost from acting out her revenge. She recites the spell and Sara's ghost is sucked back in the book but before she goes, she takes a hesitant Ben with her. A burning branch falls on the book, destroying it. The townspeople thank the gang and the Hex Girls continue with their concert. They are backed up by the gang who play various instruments: Velma on keyboards, Daphne on tambourine, Fred and Shaggy on guitar, and Scooby banging on bongo drums.
Like a number of direct-to-video Scooby-Doo animated films released in the late-1990s and early-2000s, Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost features real ghosts instead of simple bad guys in masks. While some viewers dislike this aspect of these films' plots, others welcomed the change. The videos sold well and received generally positive reviews in the press.
[edit] Cast
- Scott Innes as Scooby Doo
- Frank Welker as Fred Jones
- Mary Kay Bergman as Daphne Blake
- B.J. Ward as Velma Dinkley
- Tim Curry as Ben Ravencroft
- Jane Wiedlin as Dusk
- Jennifer Hale as Thorn
- Kimberly Brooks as Luna
- Tress MacNeille as Sarah Ravencroft
- Bob Joles as Jack
- Peter Renaday as McKnight
[edit] Trivia/Goofs
- This movie serves as an unrelated sequel to Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island. When Ben Ravencroft explains his plan to Velma, he is shown reading a newspaper of the "Moat Monster Mystery" which was the mystery they solved at the beginning of that movie, evidence of the continuity, but "Mystery Inc" is shown in the image wearing their new movie cartoon clothes. In the "Moat Monster" segment of Zombie Island the gang is wearing their clothes from the original series.
- When the gang is driving to New England, Daphne and Scooby are seen taking pictures of the countryside. The camera that Scooby is using has very similar color and design to a Kodak single-use camera.
- In the scene in the museum, Fred says he hates it when the bad guys call him and the gang "those meddling kids," but in future films he doesn't seem bothered by it.
- When Daphne, Velma, and Fred are trapped in the ring of fire, Daphne's lips are pink instead of red.
- The end of the movie, with Mystery Inc. rocking out, pays homage to the original (abandoned) concept of the show, where they were similar to The Archies as a gang of teens solving mysteries and playing in a rock band. Their instruments even correspond with the original, complete with Scooby on bongos.
- In both scenes when the Hex Girls are rehearsing and performing, the drumming that Dusk is playing does not match the audio heard. When she hits the toms, it makes a snare or cymbal sound.
- During the Hex Girls' rehearsal, when Daphne jabs Fred with her arm, his side moves before she even touches him.
- Daphne wears the same purple suit she wore in Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island.
