reviewed by Charity Bishop
    

"I wasn't allowed to watch the show when I was a kid."

It's funny that the film's main character would say that, since it's also true of me. When Bewitched was rerunning throughout my childhood, my parents didn't allow me to watch it. I think diehard fans may be slightly disappointed. It's not that the movie isn't cute, it just fails to produce consistent magic.

Isabel Bigelow (Kidman) is fed up with fussy magic, self-centered warlocks, and life in the fast lane. She moves into a nice suburban neighborhood with her cat, Lucinda, against the wishes of her womanizing father, Nigel (Caine). The new world of opening soda cans yourself, watching popcorn spin around in the microwave, and having to actually pay for things rather than tugging on her earlobe and making them appear is all very exciting to a witch. One day while out shopping, she happens to run into Jack Wyatt (Ferrell), one of television's most egotistical but failing stars. His last movie flopped so badly that DVD sales didn't even escalate. In a last attempt to salvage his failing career, Jack has accepted the role of Darren in a television remake of Bewitched. He's been searching for the perfect "Samantha" for months and quite by accident, sees Isabel twitching her nose in the library.

Begging her into doing a reading, Jack plays into her innocence by making Isabel believe that he needs her desperately. All she wants is someone to argue over paint colors with, someone who will make her fall in love... but once on the set, she realizes that her costar has successfully written her out of the show. Only her pretty face appears, while she never has any dialogue. Rather than give up in despair, together with the scheming of her two friends (Chenoweth, Heather Burns), and the influence of her witchy Aunt Clara (Carole Shelley), she decides to take matters into her own hands and extract revenge. There are a lot of adorable moments in the show that will have audiences laughing. It's charming to see Isabel so enchanted with a way of life that we've become accustomed to. Everything seems so normal to her, and it gets to the point of where we're astonished and delighted when abnormal things happen... such as seeing Nigel on a green beans can.

One thing I was delighted with was Kristin Chenoweth's appearance as the next door neighbor. Broadway fans such as myself will get a giggle out of her presence, because she originated the role of Glenda, "the Good Witch," in Wicked! on Broadway. She even briefly sings! Nicole's little nose-twitch is adorable, and the movie actually doesn't have a bad plot... but something isn't working. It's either that the charm of seeing them try and film Bewitched over that falls flat, or the performance by Will Ferrell. I have never liked him as an actor, and his Jack is over the top and unlikable. In a romantic comedy, you have to want the key characters to get together. I never wanted Isabel with him. I think the film would have worked with a different thespian in the part, someone with a little more charm. There's not a lot of content, but sexual remarks do make occasional appearances. Nigel is interested in every woman that walks by, and some of them make open propositions to him underneath a spell. The worst is Jack's nightmare about appearing naked on a late-night show. His private parts are pixilated.

Language is minimal except for a half dozen uses of the word "pussy" in a single conversation (Jack's manager is illustrating how weak Jack is), and two vulgar references to male private parts. As to be expected, there are numerous mentions of witches, magic, and witchcraft. Spells are cast that make things fall on people, fans turn on, popcorn pop, and brooms fly. Briefly, Clara and Isabel are shown stirring a boiling cauldron in order to put a hex on someone. None of it is overly dark or truthful to the occult, although one character remarks, "Everyone wants to be a witch." This is very near the truth: the ability to control your environment and manipulate things to be the way you want them is a secret desire in many of our hearts. For most people it will bring a nostalgic smile or cause them to crack open Harry Potter for the umpteenth time, but occasionally truth-seekers are lead to believe that magic is charming and empowering. If you can view it merely as a fairy tale, Bewitched is harmless. But if it engages your interest in supernatural powers, it may be dangerous.