Credit: Getty; Warner Bros
5 min read
As news of the Practical Magic sequel delights fans across the globe, we reflect on its timeless message about how the healing power of sisterhood is strong enough to conquer supernatural spirits, possession, grief and even death.
Back in October 1998, the season of the witch entered a whole new era with Practical Magic. The Owen sisters swooped onto the scene with a much-needed feminist film that celebrates the power, beauty and magic found and forged in the sisterhood between women. And, now that a sequel has been announced 26 years after the original, fans can’t wait to see the sisterhood play out on screen again.
Based on the 1995 novel by Alice Hoffman, the film follows Sally (Sandra Bullock) and Gillian (Nicole Kidman) as small-town witches who live with their Aunt Frances (Stockard Channing) and Aunt Jet (Dianne Wiest).
Despite its humble box office of £56 million (which didn’t even cover its £62 million budget), it’s remained a cult classic. Composer Alan Silvestri’s whimsical theme music does the rounds on TikTok every year now, bringing in the autumnal months and reviving our love for this 00s classic.
Descended from a long line of witches, Sally and Gilly grapple with their identity as they long to be normal and resist their natural gifts, largely due to the dark curse that runs in the family: every man who loves an Owens woman seems to die.
The supernatural thriller sees the close-knit sisters develop polar opposite lives. Sally stays in the small town and starts a family, while Gilly moves to LA, attends parties every day, has “a million friends” and falls in with an abusive alcoholic called Jimmy Angelov (Goran Visnjic).
The two are reconnected through tragedy when Sally’s husband dies, and Gilly drives through the night to be with her. Overwhelmed by grief, Sally stays in bed, and Gilly, ever the tonic to her soul, hops in with her.
Long talks lead to laughter, tears and tales, as even in the depths of her despair and heartache, Gilly brings out the glimmers of happiness for Sally again. Under the covers, she also encourages Sally to: “Get up, get dressed and brush your god damn teeth as your breath stinks… and take care of those little girls.”
It captures the wonderful power that true friends hold to sit with us during the darkest times and strike the much-needed balance of comfort, support and laughter, before gently pushing us back out into the world again.
Though my friends and I have never dressed in all-black, jumped off a roof with broomsticks or performed an exorcism, I have no doubt the women in my life would show up for me in difficult times, as Gillian and Sally do for each other.
Their bond is tested once again, as Gilly’s abusive boyfriend captures her when she tries to leave him with Sally. The women have to drug Jimmy with belladonna in order to overpower him, as he threatens to brand her with his ring and starts to choke her.
As the belladonna kicks in, it’s clear in their panic that they’ve given him too much and have accidentally killed Jimmy. Though none of us are too sad to see him go, Gilly and Sally try to revive him from the dead to correct their mistake. Yet, as warned, this dark magic somehow creates a nastier, more demonic version of the abuser, and even after death, he won’t leave Gillian alone.
Credit: Getty; Warner Bros
It’s left to Sally to save Gillian, but she can’t do it alone. She activates the phone tree and calls all of the women in the town together and they all chant together to release Gillian from his wicked grasp.
Sally’s love for her sister saves her life, as she cuts her hand and Gillian’s hand to unite their blood and rid his dark spirit from the world: “My blood, your blood, our blood.”
The unbreakable bond between these two women is the magical power that ultimately saves them from evil. In some respects, these sisters are the original Anna and Elsa, long before Frozen was even a twinkle of a snowflake in Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck’s eyes.
Like Gilly, Sally yearns to feel ‘whole’, which typically refers to when women find their ‘other half’ to make them complete. She poetically writes: “Sometimes I feel like there’s a hole inside of me, an emptiness that at times seems to burn.”
However, the hole in Sally’s heart isn’t healed by a man, but by the love of her sister. Their bond is the heart of the film and it still resonates with women, as best friends provide the love and support needed to survive the inevitable challenges of life.
As Gillian reassures her: “We’ll grow old together. It’s going to be you and me living in a big house… these two old biddies with all these cats. I bet we even die on the same day.”
The hole in Sally’s heart is healed by her sister
Witch films, like Practical Magic, offer a rare insight into the extraordinary bond between women, which has long been viewed as a threat to men and the patriarchy, like witches themselves were in the past.
Yet, the film shows that when you embrace your identity and don’t fear the power you hold (in this case magic), but use the gifts you have, that’s when you’re able to forge rare, life-altering connections and create a tangible, real kind of magic. After all, as Aunt Jet says: “There’s a little witch in all of us.”
Sisterhood is the foundation of cult witch films. Where else do you see two grown women live together platonically as they raise young women? Generations of women all co-exist under one roof, growing and learning together, all while sharing their collective experience of womanhood. Throw in some margaritas, rituals to cleanse a toxic ex and dances in the kitchen, and being a 00s witch in the Owens household definitely has its perks. Aunt Jet pitches it as: “In this house, we have chocolate cake for breakfast, and never bother with silly little things like bedtimes or brushing our teeth.” Sign us up.
It’s a glorious existence that we can’t help but long for in our own lives, and serves as a reminder that while we might not possess true magic, there’s a special power to be found in each woman and in the female friendships we forge.
Images: Warner Bros; Rex Features
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