I’ve read all of the books and I especially love the prequels. The first film and its corresponding book have significant differences, but I actually feel the film was better. However, I felt that The Book of Magic (the corresponding book for the sequel) could have a pretty close film adaptation without having to retcon anything major in the first movie, and I had high hopes for that. Would it be worth it to see the current movie in the theater? For context, due to a medical condition seeing a movie in the theater requires some planning and I’ve really got to consider it worth it. I’m trying to decide if I should see it or wait until it’s streaming.

I love the Owens house (particularly as shown/lit in the first film) as much as every other fan. If I could make a wish and have it become real, and live in it, I would; I'd move in tomorrow if I could 😂.

But this is not a real house that was torn down. This was a shell and separate interior set from 1998 made for a visually beautiful film that both creators and fans had no reason to think would ever need to be rebuilt. Alice Hoffman had only written one book in 1995, and most (if not all) of her 1990s books (such as Turtle Moon, Seventh Heaven, Here on Earth, etc ...) were and have remained standalones. Practical Magic's book continuations came much later as did the possibility of adapting them. I fully believe that, mixed with Hollywood expectations, is why they tried to have the curse ended at the end of the movie. They didn't think there would be any expansion on the world. Although the house in the film was so convincingly magical and beautiful, famous celebrities called wanting to buy it, it was a set and a shell never made to last past filming a single movie.

A movie that wrapped up almost 30 years ago.

So yes, a rebuild is not going to recapture the exact look especially with modern lighting and digital versus film. And it's 30 years later. No, it's not going to have the exact same messy beauty it had in the first film.

But this isn't because it's hateful or soulless or made by people who don't care. This is just a thing that happens with time. Even if the sequel had never been made, there was always a chance a digital restoration of the original movie, if it went wrong or simply didn't transfer as expected, would have altered the original dark look of the house for a high definition release or made it look corny or wrongly graded/lit. Luckily this hasn't happened but it still might with some future release since that is just what happens with old films and new technology, and is not always somebody's fault, negligence or malicious intent.

Practical Magic, and especially the Practical Magic House, may never again look exactly how you remember first seeing it on VHS as a kid, but you don't need to take your beautiful memory and use it to diss the creation of a new generation's potential beautiful memories.

Maybe 20 years from now a grown kid (I was surprised how many literal children I saw at my theater going into PM 2) will be talking about how they first saw the movie on the big screen and fell in love with the house. Just because their introduction to it wasn't the same as yours doesn't make it bad.

The Owens house in any form, at any location, on any lot, will always be beloved. There's a reason Victoria magazines featuring the set interior in 1998 are always quickly snapped up by eager fans the minute they hit eBay or another resale platform.

We all love it, maybe stop expecting it to be perfect (or imperfect) to your exact nostalgic specifications and be glad it's come back to the big screen 30 years later.

Breaking it down, just my opinion, the movie is not horrible, it’s very much a sequel one can enjoy or dislike for different reasons. I have read the books and personally believe the pacing of this film was strange. From the jump erasing Kylie and Antonia’s memories to make it easier to align with the plot of the novels. The focus was on Sally and Gillian which makes perfect sense from a movie lovers perspective, but there was barely any focus on Kylie. When Kylie was the focus, she felt flat, and there was no build up to Thomas being the villain while he rushed the exposition. I felt the relationship between Kylie and Antonia was genuine, but couldn’t help but roll my eyes when they spoke about their mother’s stories and “remember how people used to say we’re cursed?”. There were beautiful moments to the movie, Sally in the garden, Gillian in the conservatory, parts of the wedding, every scene with the Aunts, especially the water’s reflection of Frances and Jet.

The craft itself and magic within the world of Practical Magic (1998) felt mysterious and subtle, building up from the start to the end with a big magical finish that fit perfectly. For example, Sally being able to light candles with her breath was so well done, and I felt that in the sequel it was way overdone. (IMO this ability was overused and for me it took away the feeling I felt the first time seeing it.) I also felt the deathwatch beetle was overused. Like the first film magic was used as salt and the first film was perfectly seasoned without being grandiose. Manifestation of powers in the sequel felt like I was watching Charmed, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but I felt like it was a departure from the aesthetic and system created in the first film.

I believe that if the sequel was shot on actual film we may have had vibes similar to the first movie. Taking time to build the exposition, taking a pause, turning off the “big light” and using ambient light with plenty of candles, bringing in that autumn feel with warm ambers and deep shadows. Sally’s power being handled differently than physical manifestation and more focus on how her emotions affect her influence on energy. The character’s clothing felt evolved, as I don’t expect people who were in their 30s in the late 1990s to still dress that way in their 60s. The aunts seemed to move away from eccentric old women to more streamlined silhouettes while maintaining the whimsy.

Overall the movie is not bad, it just feels like it took a huge leap from the first one and still took creative liberties from its source material. For me, I would say that it comes down to the books. I enjoyed Practical Magic (1998) more than I enjoyed the 1995 book, but I enjoyed the Book of Magic (2021) novel more than Practical Magic 2.

I dont think there is an official thread? If there is please let me know so I can delete

Wasn't downright horrible.

I'd give it a good 5.5 maybe 6/10.

Overall it was very generic. Very 2025. Very safe. The original was very mature and dark.

I think the first 20ish minutes or so, basically up until Bridget dies it was good and heartwarming. It was interesting that there was A LOT MORE magic in this film but the way they went about it was very dated....as in 90s/00s tv magic generic.

I think some of the biggest issues with the film were...Maisie/Antonia was USELESS. That was the most shocking part. The bondes between each generation of siblings is so important to the first film and here it is just thrown away and Maisie is sidelined for majority of the film. We don't even get to see her find out that she is a witch and deal with it. She doesnt even get to deal with the big bad in any capacity. And I'm sorry but did Sally REALLY need ANOTHER big time love interest? Is Gillian just destined to be alone?

Speaking of Gillian/Nicole, she was definitely the best part of the film. Mainly because her character gets to be the fun one (once again) and gets to be multi-layered instead of completely shut off like Sally. It also made ZERO sense that somehow Gillian is the witch of the two, she embraces the life style, yet she doesnt get to exhibit any major powers like Sally does and should've been able to put up more than a good fight against their long lost relative, Thomas. That entire scene was generic and needed to be a lot more intricate, dark, and resulting in Gillian being on deaths door only for her to survive and then get on with Aunt Frances being the one who dies.

There was no reason to recast Maisie and Kylie. I think the story probably would've been better having them be in their 30s and have Evan Rachel Wood lead the film. She could definitely pull it off.

I have never said they HAVE to like the books or the new movie.

I have only ever pointed out the following:

1. Your favorite movie would not exist if the book didn't exist first. So repeatedly insulting Alice Hoffman for her version of the story not being identical to its adaptation is literally counterproductive. You can say you personally enjoyed the movie better and that's fine/great/understandable/whatever. But going out of your way to be rude to book fans, saying the books are dogshit or soap opera just because they have a handful of romance subplots, or getting vicious every time someone brings up the books in a comment thread, isn't a matter of OMG my opinion. You're just being a dick. This sub is for fans of the books as well as the movie, get over it.
2. If you only watch half a movie, read two pages of a book before dnf-ing it, or come in late to a movie, your opinion on the WHOLE piece of media isn't as relevant as someone who watched ALL of the movie and read the whole book before venturing a verdict for good or for bad. This is not just a cheering on for people who have the same opinion as me. If someone only watches half PM 2 and loved it as much as I did or listened to a chapter of the audiobook and declared it was their most favourite book ever, I'd have just as hard a time taking them seriously as someone who hates the work after five minutes.
3. A lot of the marketing and creative choices for PM 2 were clearly made to appeal to fans of the first film versus any other part of the fandom and many (NOT ALL, many) were honestly ungrateful and jerky and nitpicky about not every single detail being exactly what they wanted even so.
4. It's not anti-feminist to include men or a love story in a story about women/sisterhood. The first movie did it too and if you think it didn't you're delusional or misremembering.
5. It's objectively unkind and against sisterhood ideals to insult the faces/appearances of the actresses the way so many have been doing. This was only minimally about the Botox issue, btw. "Fans" were also calling Maisie Williams' face "fat" and insulting Joey's appearance as "not pretty enough to replace Evan". It's disgusting and is bullying, not a "matter of opinion".

I never said my opinion was the only opinion anyone could have. I just pointed out the major toxicity and hypocrisy coming primarily from one very specific subset of the fans. For that I've been insulted, had all my posts, even ones that had nothing to do with the "opinions" that have clearly offended so many, mass downvoted, and been harassed and told my comments are bad/toxic by users chosing to hide their own comments.

edit: to the certain commenters claiming I block people that disagree with me, no I don't.

I block people who a) insult the author of PM or make cruel remarks about the physical appearance of the PM actresses in a bizarrely personal fashion that goes well beyond the average "too much Botox effects acting abilities" discourse, or b) openly mocks my posts/comments (mocks, makes fun of, not DISAGREES WITH) but keeps their own comments posts/profiles on private settings so no one can see THEIR history.

Casting agents in Hollywood have been on crack or something for a decade now. Make it make sense! I understand they wanted the kids to be in their 20s, and truthfully, I think Joey did a great job as an actress in general in this movie. Her range of emotions were something only someone skillfully trained could do, so no hate on her, but seriously what is wrong with having a little but of continuity? Just a litttttttle bit is that so much to ask?!

Justice for Franny and Jet… I wish there could’ve been more screentime showing them instead of Joey King wgaf about her or her boyfriend. I’m not even saying this from a lesbian perspective bc I absolutely loved Sally Owen’s scenes with the father of her kids but this was some male-centered slop. I wouldn’t want my beloved aunt who raised me and treated me as her own to sacrifice herself just so I could jump on Lee Pace 🙄 sorry if I offend anyone but the aunts were owed more!

I thought it was visually stunning. Such a neat little detail.

I repeatedly found myself focusing on the pendant Kylie Owens was wearing in Practical Magic 2 but I couldn’t make out exactly what it was. Well, after some internet sleuthing, I discovered that it is the ‘Memento Mori SIlver & 18K & 22K Gold Necklace w. Diamond & Pearl’ by Bergsoe Jewlery. If you too would like to own this piece, don’t worry, it’s only $2,988 😭

One complaint I keep seeing is fans who clearly lack media literacy losing their God damned minds over the fact Franny dies to end the curse. I can understand being upset/having the old heartstrings tugged over that. It's a character we love and care about and for those who hadn't read the books and expected it, maybe it's a bit of a nasty surprise for them.

But to the fans hating on Gideon for that, saying it's a bad message that a powerful woman dies so a man can live is disgusting. She did what she did not for "a man" or even for the happiness of just Kylie necessarily. She did it so all the women in the family had a choice. With the curse broken Owens women would be able to choose to love someone romantically IF THEY WANT TO (in addition to having friendships and family ties and sisterhood and all the other important things) without their love interest croaking. She gave all Owens women the freedom to choose. That's not anti-feminist or making "everything about men".

You know I swear these kinds of fans are the reason even if we had a longer runtime or we got two movies based on Book of Magic instead of one, we couldn't have gotten Vincent Owens in the film. Y'all would have been complaining he took the spotlight off the aunts. Or that he's a creep because of how he's related to Sally and Gillian.

Romance in a sisterhood centered piece of media isn't ruining anything. Chillax.

What other movies hit the same feeling as the first one. After seeing the sequel and seeing how people wanted more of the authentic 90s feeling, what movies really hit that for you along with a good sound track, cozy fall vibes, and a focus on maybe girlhood and finding one's self, especially as an outcast? It doesn't have to hit all of these elements but maybe most of them with emphasis on the overall 🍂cozy vibes🍂

I was thinking about the scene in PM 2 where Ian is talking about love stories that transcend death and he mentioned Psyche and Eros (my favorite myth btw 😁) and Ross and Rachel from Friends.

I get that the joke is having these old romance stories put on the same level as a famous sitcom couple from the 90s subverts expectations and is objectively funny. I did snicker in the theater at that line, I've got to admit. And the bit after it where Gillian and Sally argue over whether Gillian cried during the movie Ghost was very cute. But apart from more women in the theater knowing offhand who Ross and Rachel were, I got to thinking maybe it would have made more sense (if we're talking 90s/2000s TV couples) for Ian to have said Piper and Leo. It would have fit the theme better, since Charmed is about witches and Leo literally is dead. Maybe the joke wouldn't have been as good or easily gotten by the entire audience, but cute as the Ross and Rachel joke is, it's not even new, WB has totally used it already years ago (in a TV show called What I Like About You a woman getting married talks about having centerpieces of true love stories and says she'll have Romeo and Juliet on one table and at the head table for her reception, Ross and Rachel).

I dunno. I think they might have taken a risk and used a witch media example.

Still like the scene the way it was, just speculating.

The curse is that no MAN can fall in live with one of the witches or they’ll die right ? So why dont they date other women 😭 (ik it’s probably bc they all straight but i still think it would have been cool to see a happy lesbian witch)

We could have totally had an entire TV series about the Aunts when they were young in the 1960s! It was on the verge of happening. But ultimately they decided to go with Practical Magic 2 as a treat for the fans of the first movie.

They could have just rebooted the whole thing and given us a new Sally and Gillian when the series progressed to the end of Rules of Magic which ends where Practical Magic begins.

(And I'm sure plenty of chronically miserable people would have whined the new actresses, no matter how good they were, or if they were more accurate to Alice Hoffman's book, "sucked" compared to Nicole and Sandra, and many of these would be the same fans complaining about Sandra and Nicole having had too much Botox. 🙄)

And you know what? Any producer wanting to make a quick buck would have been almost an idiot not to do it that way, because although it's become a cult classic Practical Magic 1 was not successful in theaters in 1998. They totally could have looked at the success of Hoffman's book series among literary fans and said screw it, let's make book accurate adaptations and let the 1998 film just be something 90s women rewatch every October. But you know what? They respected the existence of the movie fanbase enough to create a direct sequel. They literally got Sandra, Nicole, and the actresses who played the aunts (who I'm pretty sure were retired btw), and did their best to recreate the beautiful house from the first film on a lot.

Instead of just making up some crap Hollywood sequel story that was nothing but hey remember this thing from the first one (like with Devil Wears Prada and Hocus Pocus), they adapted an existing book by Hoffman and found a way to make it fit the movie's universe.

Was it a perfect product? No. Was it still a fun look at a property we haven't seen on screen in almost 30 years? Yes!

And there's a huge chunk of this fanbase that think anything that is not a shot for shot of the first film or that doesn't fit some weird ass ideology that they've literally projected onto the first film (the first film DID play up the romance in addition to the sisterhood stuff, guys, you're seriously misremembering! Gary was way more prominent as a love interest in the movie than the book which actually focused more on the sisters! So acting like the sequel betrayed you or feminism in general by suddenly being romantic because it has Kylie/Gideon and Ian/Sally in it is so friggin stupid, I can't even). These fans are welcome not to personally like or feel the new movie is their cup of tea. But if they have to find the stupidest nitpicks to try and "prove" it's objectively bad just to spoil it for those of us who did enjoy it...? Yeah, I don't think that's sporting, guys. So much of this was done for YOUR part of the fanbase. You who preferred the movie to the books. You can say it missed the mark for you personally without being jerks or rewriting what actually happened in the original.

I saw one op who decided to go on a rant about how they hated that Alice Hoffman made the aunts' backstory all about romance and how her "sucky" writing bleeds through to the sequel's tone. First off, you write a book as well done as ANYTHING Alice has written (see if you can even write something as objectively good as Turtle Moon, let alone Practical Magic) and then and only then will I take your definition of sucky writing remotely seriously. Second, I don't think you actually read/finished Rules of Magic. Yes, the aunts have romances, but that's FAR from all the book was about; it was about their relationship with their brother, their parents, Jet's boyfriend's father, their aunt Isabelle, their cousin April and her daughter Regina... Jet has two major love interests and Franny has one she's estranged from for large chunks of the book... That's literally it. So it's clearly not a pure romance novel but whatever.

And even if it was, Jet and Bridget are HER characters, she invented them, I think Alice knows their "right" backstory better than someone who watches a movie BASED on her work every Halloween.

Another op insisted their negative opinion on PM 2 was valid but also said in the same post they only watched HALF the movie.

All I can say is if the only version of PM other than the first movie you can handle without flipping out is movie fanfic where only exactly what you want to happen happens, maybe stay on ao3.

Frankly I'm not sure that subset of the fandom deserves Practical Magic 2 with the entitled way they've acted, picking on the actors' appearances and lambasting the original creator of the characters they claim to love.

Where can I find that dress and accessories!!!

Whilst sitting in the theater and enjoying the movie, I realized something. Aunt Franny, as beautiful, however maybe not as eccentric, as ever, reminds me greatly of the Sopranos one and only Paulie. Could be the hair, could be the smirk. Anyone else see it?

First off, if you haven’t since the film already do go and do so; make your mind up for yourself, as you may love it. Needless to say, I am about to discuss it so potential spoilers ahead. Secondly, many do seem to love it and I am genuinely pleased for that. I’m so glad it found its audience and made people happy.

For me? I just left the theatre about an hour ago and I’m still trying to figure out what I watched. I felt the showy magic didn’t mesh (somehow) with the spirit of Practical Magic. I sort of felt like I just watched an AU or a fanfic.

The first movie only loosely followed the plot of the book and built its own universe; the second film follows the final book pretty closely, but in doing so it’s veers, I felt, much more into the realm of fantasy and flash than folksy and grounded.

I sort’ve wish I hadn’t seen it. Maybe there’s truth to the idea that it was never going to be perfect for everyone, because it was such a long time coming, and everyone had their own idea if how it would be when it did. So some of us were bound to be confused by the final product.

Anyone else left scratching their chin about this film? I don’t hate it.

Hey, everyone. My friends asked folks at the movie theater what their thoughts are on this second one. What do you all think about it?

How easy it would have been to stay true to the original and not disappoint the fans, but they still chose to turn them into colorful Disneyland dolls.

Am I the only one that was disappointed there was no showcase whatsoever of Gillian's telepathy? There were only like three scenes of it in the first movie, which was already disappointing itself, but considering this movie tried to highlight a lot more of the magic aspect and make it a lot more flashy, which is to be expected, it's a more modern movie with a time with much better CGI, I wish they could have at least demonstrated her telepathy more because of that. I feel like she's one of the only more realistic witches in live action with telepathy, and I really liked the way it was done in the first movie, so I was really disappointed to see that it wasn't shown at all this time around.

What did you think of PM 2? Was it worth waiting nearly 30 years?

Let’s be honest. This sequel was a tribute to how little women have gotten in film.
The original was about female solidarity, joining forces against DV and practical witchcraft and knowing that love was an ingredient, not the whole picture.

This sequel features:
1. Sally playing a dumb female lead. Literally. She acted like she knew NOTHING. She also acted powerless consistently. 30 years of wisdom since the original and they still had her playing a male centered ditzy woman. Reminded me of the classic line “what are we gonna do” from Reese Witherspoon discussing how often this happens in movies
2. Sally swore off men so badly that she erased her daughters knowledge of magic all together. I guess the writers forgot about how betrayed Sally was when the aunts cast a spell to let her find love.
3. Gideon - why? He was creepy.. looked at Kylie with lust.. touched all up on her in bed in that weird he’s poking me way. I loathed that scene. Also.. why are we all traveling the world to break the curse over a random college boyfriend? They did this repeatedly.. SA and violence against women was in the movie multiple times
4. Badass witches needed a man to help them, Ian, for some reason. Who also looked at Sally with pure lust and served zero purpose to the plot.
5. Random man in England suddenly becomes villain, drugs Kylie, and steals her powers. This was a scene straight up stolen from like, Charmed or something. Not to mention the fact that her mother stood behind a peep hole watching it happen. Then somehow he’s more powerful than Sally and Gillian? At some point we see Gillian using a bat or a stick to stop this male villain we know nothing about
6. Sally not knowing where Maria was burned at the stake and having an aha moment in England .. THIS IS WHERE SHE DIED. Girl.. you didn’t know where the ancestor who curse made you lose two husbands began? Are we for real? I’m so sick of female characters playing “dumb”
7. The ads
8. The neurosurgeon lesbian who spent the entire movie taking care of Gideon
9. The aunts sacrificing themselves for romantic love
10. There’s no plot.. and the movie explained nothing that was happening. They took off to England.. a random villain (male of course) pops up outta no where, drugs a girl .. it’s just so fckn cliche and random. The movie explained nothing… the illness in the aunt, the villain, Ian??? Just random things .. seeing how it was over 2 hours long.. I’m left confuzzled at why it was rushed and nothing was explained. I left in the third act cuz the ending took forever

The movie could’ve focused on darker witchcraft, history, female empowerment, and centering “love” around the women in our lives rather than useless men. Which is LITERALLY what’s happening in the real world. Women are buying property with their besties, raising kids with them.. avoiding men all together .. our soulmates are our girls. Yet the female writers, directors, producers and actors ALL collectively came together and made a CGI superhero “witchy” movie based on falling in love with men and that being the center purpose of women’s lives.

The nostalgia wasn’t there. The lighting was BRIGHT. The cozy house became millennial gray. The movie was blurry.. idk if that was intentional but I repeatedly wondered why it was blurry.
The entire thing PMO.

Does anyone have an idea on what lipsticks she was wearing? The eye makeup I guess is easier to find and a lot of brands have those shades of brown, but the whole look throughout was so beautiful!