The Witches/YMMV


 * And I Must Scream: In the beginning of the book, when the grandmother is telling Luke stories that she's heard about children abducted by witches, one of the stories is about a girl that appeared in a painting in her home. According to the grandmother, the painting changed constantly, from the girl being in the farmhouse to feeding ducks in the lake. She even grew up in the painting. The fact that her position in the painting changed means that the girl was conscious throughout
 * There's also the boy who was turned to stone. His parents used him as a hat rack.
 * Complete Monster: ALL of the witches, especially the Grand High Witch. The one witch who expresses reservation about killing all the children is incinerated alive by the Grand High Witch for the temerity of saying she is wrong.
 * There is a good witch in the movie, however, who ultimately.
 * English witches are said to be especially sadistic. As opposed to simply killing or transforming children, their prefer to transform them into some form of animal (e.g pheasants during hunting season) and let the parents do the rest. Witches in general also make a point to kill/remove children on a weekly basis, and they even have a rhyme about it. Why do they do all this? Because kids smell bad.
 * Crowning Moment of Heartwarming:
 * Esoteric Happy Ending: Subverted. The book seems to be coasting to a happy ending, but turns out more bittersweet.
 * Most Annoying Sound: Luke's voice in the film. Especially the point where he keeps shrieking "Grandma!"
 * Nightmare Fuel: The Grand High Witch is horrifying, in all versions. Also, the book invites the young readers or listeners to consider that their teacher -- who could be reading the book to them -- could be a Witch. It also points out that nice ladies are more likely than nasty ones to be Witches, because they depend on deceit.
 * Also, the various anecdotes about how children are disposed of by the witches, such as trapping them inside paintings.
 * The transformation scene of Bruno turning into a rat is pretty frightening in itself in the movie version. Frightening enough to even be just as scary for older viewers.
 * Nothing Is Scarier: Part in-universe, part meta-example: We never find out why Grandma is missing a thumb, only that it involved a witch: how else would she know so much about witches? Her grandson's speculation includes such lovely possibilities as having it pulled out "like a tooth" or stuck in the spout of a teakettle until it was "steamed away." With this kind of inspiration, the reader's imagination comes up with something far more terrifying than anything that could have been in the story.
 * Paranoia Fuel: Any woman at all could be a witch. Any one. They may be targeting kids, but if an adult gets in the way, too bad for them.
 * Wouldn't that make mothers suspects as well? You know, the ones that give birth to children?
 * But if witches hate children so much, why would they have any themselves?
 * Maybe they an in attempt to produce more witches? I mean, if the Grand High Witch keeps incinerating them all...
 * Nah, they're a different species, and it'd take a special kind of kinky man to want to sleep with a toeless, clawed, bald woman with a scabby head anyway.
 * Rule Thirty Six
 * WTH Casting Agency: Rowan Atkinson plays a very serious innkeeper in the movie.