Day 8 of 13 Days of Halloween

Practical Magic

     Witches have had a varied history throughout Hollywood. They have been cackling hags flying about on broomsticks, seductresses out to ensnare both men and women, innocent girls, and mocking women chasing after children. Practical Magic takes a different approach to witches by portraying them as regular people.

Story:

     A family of witches lives on an island off the coast of Massachusetts. The inhabitants have heard and spread rumors of them being witches for generations. No one wants to prove it as everyone already "knows". The witches have been under a curse for over two hundred years that any man who loves them dies unnaturally early. One of the sisters gets in to some trouble with an abusive boyfriend and things go downhill from there. Of course things get straightened out and everything ends well. I really like the fact that the witches are just regular people. They're not trying to cause evil or chaos. They're just trying to make a living. The only problem I have with the story is that the curse is broken almost as an afterthought.

Magic:

     Magic is depicted as,well, practical. Nobody attempts to hurl lightning bolts or fly (floating down from the roof doesn't count). The sky doesn't darken as a curse or hex is cast. The use of magic is downplayed to an everyday occurrence. I really like this because it makes them to be outsiders instead of feared and sinister.

     I really like this film both as a supernatural story and as a romance. Both plots are given equal weight and equal attention.

Overall Rating: 4.6/5