2/10
Forget original material, sequels are all the rage in the movie business. In fact, the sequel fad has now found a new victim, Practical Magic, the 1998 fall witchy drama starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman.
The original Practical Magic is no masterpiece, it’s got a shaky plot and major cliches, but it’s a cult classic for a reason. Sally Owens (Sandra Bullock) and Gillian Owens (Nicole Kidman) are two sisters navigating their lives as witches beholden to a terrible family curse: any man they fall in love with is destined to die. The pair were raised by their eccentric aunts, Frances (Stockard Channing) and Bridget (Dianne Wiest). Practical Magic follows the sisters as they deal with the horrible ramifications of this curse and their magic. The film’s signature fall atmosphere and exuberant performances have made it a fan favorite.
Unfortunately, Practical Magic 2 has none of the magic of its predecessor. The sequel turns away from the themes of sisterhood it claims to champion, has a terrible script, and lacks any of the artistic elements that made the original so iconic.
The sequel picks up in the modern day, with Sally’s daughters, Kylie Owens (Joey King) and Antonia Owens (Maisie Williams), all grown up. Sally ensures that the sisters are unaware of their witch heritage and the curse that haunts them. So, when things get serious between Kylie and her boyfriend Gideon (Xolo Maridueña), disaster strikes. Gideon gets into a car accident and falls into a coma. When Sally eventually comes clean about the curse, Kylie lashes out at her mother for her secrecy and journeys to England in search of the secrets to break her family’s curse. Both Sally and Gillian follow her, but leave behind Antonia and Frances to care for the comatose Gideon. As for Aunt Bridget, she was killed off early and not mentioned for the rest of the film.
Leaving Antonia behind is certainly strange. The essence of the first Practical Magic has always been about sisterhood, and one would think that the sequel would focus on developing that with the new generation of Owens sisters. But no, Antonia is barely in the movie. Her presence has absolutely no impact on the plot, and her relationship with Kylie is given no attention. Instead, we are privy to a lot of cute banter between Sally and Gillian, a sibling relationship that has already had a whole movie of fleshing out.
To be fair, Sally and Gillian scenes are by far the most entertaining. Bullock and Kidman are undeniable stars and have great chemistry. However, Practical Magic 2 believes their fun sisterly banter can carry all the thematic weight the movie needs, which is simply not true. Sisterhood, even the first movie seems to understand, is far more complex than just banter.
Practical Magic 2 also suffers from a typical, yet particularly painful screenwriting flaw: telling rather than showing. The film clearly thinks its audience is stupid, and that ideas need to be stated aloud by actors in order to be understood. This makes for cringy, unnatural dialogue, especially between Sally and her new love interest, a professor of magic named Ian Wright (Lee Pace).
Ian’s heavy presence in the movie is indicative of another one of its shortcomings. There are too many men. The focus of the film is supposed to be (and was, in the case of the first film) about witches, women who have taken power for themselves and mastered their magic craft. However, Practical Magic 2 chooses a male magic professor as a central guiding figure for Sally and Gillian, even though the Owens sisters are two seasoned witches who shouldn’t need any help to understand magic. To make matters worse, Ian’s interpretations of magic always come across as condescending and pretentious, making his scenes particularly difficult to sit through.
At least Kylie manages to rescue Gideon and live happily ever after. The film ends with the couple’s wedding, and mustering up any sort of emotion for the pair is shockingly difficult.
The fact that the audience’s final moments with the Owen’s sisters are at a wedding also feels wrong. It would be much more powerful, and consistent thematically, if the movie concluded with a cute moment between sisters, rather than a wedding with a man who could not be more dry. But oh well. One can’t expect too much.
It’s hard to ignore how Practical Magic 2 has none of the whimsical energy that makes the original so fun to watch. The warm and fuzzy ambience of the first film is replaced by Ninja blender product placement, CGI, and loads of plastic surgery. It just feels painfully empty. It truly is a shame that it looks so bad. Most of the film’s issues could be brushed under the rug if it just looked a little better.
The most obvious question that emerges from Practical Magic 2 is: Why? This movie did not need to happen. The original Practical Magic is a fun time, but it never needed to be more than that. Unfortunately, Practical Magic 2 is reflective of a trend. Studios only seem more eager to keep shoving new sequels down people’s throats. It’s just tragic that now, every iconic ’90s film requires a sequel. Is that really all the creativity we have left?
