Rating: 
Summary: "Bewitched" Meets "The Exorcist"
Review: Sally Owens (Sandra Bullock) and sister Gillian (Nicole Kidman) are modern day witches, with real magical powers. Sally is shy and conventional, only wanting to ignore her power, fit into the everyday world and live a normal life. Gillian is the wild child who runs away from home to live life in the fast lane - sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll - until her psycho boyfriend turns mean and she calls on Sally for help.I have to register one major gripe with this film. I mean, it truly drove me nuts. In the opening scene, when the girls' ancestor, witch Maria Owens, is about to be hanged, the noose around her neck isn't even pulled tight. It's about two feet across and, if she'd actually taken the big fall, would've slipped right off her head. Amazing sloppiness on the filmmakers' part. It's hard to get caught up in a movie when, during the very first scene, you're shaking your head and muttering, "What were they THINKING?" The Owens women, thanks to a curse laid by Maria, are doomed to have any man they love die. Sally as a little girl has the perfect solution: she casts a spell wishing for a man with an impossible list of attributes. "He will hear my call a mile away. He will whistle my favorite song. He can ride a pony backwards. He can flip pancakes in the air. He'll be marveously kind. And his favorite shape will be a star." Since such a man can't possibly exist, she'll never be in love, thus never suffer a broken heart. Years later Sally falls in love, not with her dream man but a normal guy, they marry and have two beautiful daughters - then he's run over in the street. Sally, recognizing the curse, concludes she'll never love again. Then one day, up shows Aidan Quinn.... Trailers for this film were really misleading. If all you knew about Practical Magic came from them, you'd think it was a bright, happy romantic comedy. While there are certainly elements of that in here, it's actually a weird and not entirely successful blend of comedy, romance and violent, creeped-out horror story. Scenes like Sally kissing her future husband for the first time to the bouncy strains of Faith Hill's "This Kiss" or an entire family of witches, dressed in black Halloween finery, opening their umbrellas on top of a tall house, then jumping off and drifting to the ground Mary Poppins-style, are charming. They make a strange mix, however, with things like Sally bludgeoning a man to death with a frying pan, or Nicole Kidman, possessed by the spirit of that self-same dead man (who happens to be a serial woman killer) running her tongue slooooowly along one of Sandra Bullock's incredible cheekbones and hissing, "I'm feeling VERY into sisters right now." (Got to hand it to Nicole Kidman, she does "possessed" very well. Linda Blair has nothing on this woman. Personally, I'm holding out for a movie where Nicole Kidman plays a vampire. She's already got that pale, bloodless, languid look about her; she only needs a pair of sexy needle point fangs to really rock.) But....I digress. In later scenes, the witch-phobic wives of the town, after decades of despising the Owens women, when called upon by Sally to help in Gillian's exorcism, instantly and cheerfully pitch in. This stretches the suspension of disbelief, to say the least. There are good things here, mostly Sandra Bullock, owner of one of the most beautiful, expressive faces and solid set of acting skills in Hollywood. It's just awfully hard not to like Sally Owens. She's so achingly decent (and looks just like Sandra Bullock, always a positive thing). Sally's been hard used by life, but still tries to hold it all together, be a good mother to her daughters, help Gillian in her time of need, she's ALMOST given up hope she'll ever again find love and happiness. You can't help but root for Sally. She's irresistible. Let's not forget Nicole Kidman, who obviously had a blast making this movie. No one, no matter how good an actress, could sport the evil little grin Gillian has in the "being turned around by two girls while bound to a chair" scene without the actress in question having the time of her life. Gillian is the dark to Sally's light, and for all their differences the bond between the sisters, their very real love, is well presented and quite believable. Practical Magic can't seem to decide whether it wants to be an upbeat, life affirming romantic comedy or a grim, frightening horror movie. By trying to be both at once, it ultimately fails at both. At the same time, though the pieces of the movie don't fit very well, some of the individual pieces are fascinating. This is certainly an interesting failure, compelling in its way. If Practical Magic doesn't totally succeed, it fails while trying to pull off something quite unusual. I'm glad I saw it.
Rating: 
Summary: A seductive tale and excellent actors/actresses
Review: This was a suprizingly good movie. Before I saw Practical Magic, I thought that this movie was primarily a movie only for women to enjoy, but I also discovered that I liked it as well (being a male), because of a great plot and wonderful acting by everyone in the movie. Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Stockard Channing, Dianne Wiest, Adian Quinn really make this movie go far beyond "just average". The plot is captivating with Bullock playing the "sensible sister" and Kidman as the "free spirited sister", yet each have their own sadness and burden to carry. The story slowly unfolds and it also captures the viewers interest as well. Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest portray the sisters Aunts, and they are charming and fun to watch. Goran Visnjic is scary as the evil guy that Kidman is involved with and Adian Quinn, is the innocent bystander who quickly becomes involved in the plot (which I wont tell, but believe me its great!). This is a movie that both men and women can watch and maybe learn a little more about each other and how the opposite sex thinks. Plus, the story is captivating as well. Practical Magic is funny, a little scary, charming movie that is highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Great host of actresses and a real chick flick
Review: The greatest thing about this movie is the soundtrack, which is full of terrific poppy tunes, and also some oldies but goodies - particularly Elvis' "Always On My Mind". The actresses are also great in this. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are two very good actresses, although their more recent films have left something to be desired, and as sisters, they're perfect. Stockard Channing - who will always be known as Rizzo from Grease to me - and Dianne Wiest make a great pair of busybodies, and make you want to have aunts like them yourself. The two strong male leads (Goran Visnjic and Aidan Quinn) make you root for the separate romances - although Goran Visnjic does remind too much of Adrian Brody for some reason! And if you've got sharp eyes, you will also need that one of Sandra Bullock's children is actually Evan Rachel Wood, who was one of the main stars in Thirteen! And she's really grown up. Some of the best parts in this film, is the chemistry between Sandra & Aidan's characters, and also the ache you feel when Sandra's character is missing Aidan's character - it's true love enclosed in a film. You'd be wrong if you think this is another Halloween film - it may be based around witches (and I'll hate it when I see "blood on the moon" now), but it entertains, and isn't a kiddies movie, like Hocus Pocus.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: The story line is fantastic--that of friendship, sisterhood, attaining dreams, and love. This movie shows witches in a more realistic light incomparison to the ole tale of green skin and bubbling eyes of newt. It, also, shows the politics that they face due to these deeply rooted tales and lends hope that the general populus will become more embracing/accepting of others' beliefs--particularly that of earth-based religions.
Rating:
Summary: Enchantingly Fun!!
Review: This is a very magical, romantic, and fun movie for almost the entire family! This has a sluth of stars such as: Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Aidan Quinn, and the spectacular Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest. The movie is about a family curse on a witch family. When someone long ago in the family had put a curse on herself to never fall in love again it turned into a curse, for any Owen woman who falls in love they are sure to be doomed when they hear the ticketing beattle. Sandra Bullock plays Sally Owens a witch who has seen her mother die of a broken heart and never wants to fall in love again, so she creats a man who's got qualities that wouldn't exsist. Her sister is played by the amazing Nicole Kidman who's a bit of a wild woman and wants to fall in love, however, falls in love with the wrong guy. The sisters get wrapped up in a bad seed of spells, and the elder aunts make them clean up their own messes. The film is fun, adventerious. And studying Wicca and Witchcraft they make it a point to explain how witches where wrongly cheated by others who believed they studied dark, and devil worship which isn't the case at all. They make good points in the movie about Witchcraft, and the horrid teasing they get from the townspeople. The movie is fun, very spooky, and the cast is brilliant. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman have excellent chemistry together and I would love to see them do something together sometime soon. Not to mention the kids are very sweet and cute in this film and the aunts played by Stockard Channing and Diane Wiest are fantastic together this movie is great, its a bit slow but ultimately great storytelling, fantastic special effects, and wonderful acting!
The DVD is a great buy as well it has a great special 3D menu, with a great Jump to a Scene, Special Features, Special Languages, Reel Recs, and of course playing of the movie. The commentary I didn't find all to great it was a bit boring but interesting to say the least, it's done by Sandra Bullock who I believe co-produced the movie, director Griffin Dunne, and the amazing Alan Silvestri who has done a great job with the music of the film. The sound is a bit low but it's a great movie and great DVD!!
Rating:
Summary: Great! Two Thumbs to the sky!
Review: It was great! According to real witchcraft, it was pretty accurate!
Rating:
Summary: I loved this movie.
Review: No matter what religion you are or how you feel about witchcraft, if you enjoy good acting & a great storyline, you'll like this film. Both Bullock & Kidman are excellent & their characters are well-drawn, likable & familiar. Most women will relate to the loves & losses, trials & errors of these independent young women. They are, of course, different in some ways. Born into a legacy of witches & dark history, the Owens females live under a curse that destroys any man who gets too close to them. (Then again, some of us may have felt 'cursed' more than once in our love lives...) Bullock plays Sally, the levelheaded one who is determined to have a "normal" life. She falls in love early (w/a little crafty help from the aunts -Stockard Channing & Dianne Wiest), then marries & has two daughters who look exactly like she & 'Gillie' (Kidman). For a few years, Sally is blissfully happy until the day she hears the cricket chirp - a sign of impending death. After her husband is killed, Sally falls into a depression so deep that only her sister can pull her out. They have an unbreakable bond - not only of blood & love, but of spirit. The strength of this bond actually saves Gillie's life, when she manages to hook-up with an evil madman who 'comes back' from death. The ending is quite well done. This was a movie about belief, trust, family & a very old fight - good vs. evil. It was also about a love strong & pure enough to break a centuries-old curse, true enough to save a woman pulled in the depths of true evil. It is touching, satisfying & emotionally uplifting. Rent it! Then rent it again for the soundtrack alone!
Rating:
Summary: Great host of actresses and a real chick flick
Review: The greatest thing about this movie is the soundtrack, which is full of terrific poppy tunes, and also some oldies but goodies - particularly Elvis' "Always On My Mind". The actresses are also great in this. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are two very good actresses, although their more recent films have left something to be desired, and as sisters, they're perfect. Stockard Channing - who will always be known as Rizzo from Grease to me - and Dianne Wiest make a great pair of busybodies, and make you want to have aunts like them yourself. The two strong male leads (Goran Visnjic and Aidan Quinn) make you root for the separate romances - although Goran Visnjic does remind too much of Adrian Brody for some reason! And if you've got sharp eyes, you will also need that one of Sandra Bullock's children is actually Evan Rachel Wood, who was one of the main stars in Thirteen! And she's really grown up. Some of the best parts in this film, is the chemistry between Sandra & Aidan's characters, and also the ache you feel when Sandra's character is missing Aidan's character - it's true love enclosed in a film. You'd be wrong if you think this is another Halloween film - it may be based around witches (and I'll hate it when I see "blood on the moon" now), but it entertains, and isn't a kiddies movie, like Hocus Pocus.
Rating:
Summary: How did this slip under the radar?
Review: This is a very good movie. Sharp, original, and smart. Bullock and Kidman hit it out of the park here. Struggling to come to terms with who and what you are... With your lot in life. Being honest about who you are. That's what is at the heart of this film. And it works.
Rating:
Summary: AN ENCHANTINGLY ENTERTAINING FILM
Review: A truly magical ancestress, a witch in very deed, escapes the hangman's noose only to place a curse on herself and her female posterity. What ensues is an enchantingly wonderful, though sometimes dark, tale of two witch sisters who live to deal with the family curse. Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock star as the witch sisters who approach their upbringing in magic very differently. Bullock's character, the level headed and pragmatic Sally, wants nothing more than to find true love and live a normal life while her sister Gillian (Kidman) wants to live it up and change the men in her life like most people change their socks. The two join magical forces when one of Gillian's assorted men emerges as a sinister character played by Goran Visnjic. Their adventures seem to have gone well until a lawman (Aidan Quinn) shows up with all too many questions and seems all too familiar to Sally. Perhaps even more appealing than Kidman and Bullock from the standpoint of screen presence, Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing star as a couple of enchanting -- almost Victorian -- aunts of our two heroines that are absolutely spellbinding and unforgettable. Practical Magic, regardless of the theme, is not a Halloween flick like Hocus Pocus and should not be avoided by any who might think that it has seasonal appeal. An enchantingly entertaining film! Douglas McAllister
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