Bewitched (2005)

Thinking he can overshadow an unknown actress in the part, an egocentric actor unknowingly gets a witch cast in an upcoming television remake of the classic show "Bewitched".

Director:

Nora Ephron

Writers:

Nora Ephron, Delia Ephron,

Stars:

Nicole Kidman, Will Ferrell, Shirley MacLaine

1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nicole Kidman	...	Isabel Bigelow / Samantha
Will Ferrell	...	Jack Wyatt / Darrin
Shirley MacLaine	...	Iris Smythson / Endora
Michael Caine	...	Nigel Bigelow
Jason Schwartzman	...	Ritchie
Kristin Chenoweth	...	Maria Kelly
Heather Burns	...	Nina
Jim Turner	...	Larry
Stephen Colbert	...	Stu Robison
David Alan Grier	...	Jim Fields
Michael Badalucco	...	Joey Props
Carole Shelley	...	Aunt Clara
Steve Carell	...	Uncle Arthur
Katie Finneran	...	Sheila Wyatt
James Lipton	...	James Lipton

Storyline

Out in California's San Fernando Valley, Isabel is trying to reinvent herself. A naïve, good-natured witch, she is determined to disavow her supernatural powers and lead a normal life. At the same time, across town, Jack Wyatt a tall, charming actor is trying to get his career back on track. He sets his sights on an updated version of the beloved 1960s situation comedy Bewitched, re-conceived as a starring vehicle for himself in the role of the mere-mortal Darrin. Fate steps in when Jack accidentally runs into Isabel. He is immediately attracted to her and her nose, which bears an uncanny resemblance to the nose of Elizabeth Montgomery, who played Samantha in the original TV version of Bewitched. He becomes convinced she could play the witch Samantha in his new series. Isabel is also taken with Jack, seeing him as the quintessential mortal man with whom she can settle down and lead the normal life she so desires. It turns out they're both right--but in ways neither of them ever ...

---

Plot Keywords:

witch | actor | actress | spell | love | 

---

Taglines:

Be warned. Be ready.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some language, including sex and drug references, and partial nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Columbia Tristar [fr] Sony Pictures [us]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

24 June 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hechizada

Filming Locations:

4427 Radford Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$85,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$194,319 (Belgium) (7 October 2005)

Gross:

$2,096,756 (Brazil) (14 October 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Red Wagon Entertainment, Bewitched

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Broomsticks were sent out to movie theaters as promotional items for the film.

---

Goofs

After Jack has been hexed by Aunt Clara, and asked Isabel out on a date, he backs toward his trailer, still talking to her. We can see his bike directly behind him, and he will trip over it in a second. After a close-up of Isabel we cut back to Jack, and only the wheel of the up-ended bike is visible. Perhaps the gag was deleted.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Isabel Bigelow: [Outside a house at which Isabel has just landed and made available for rent, furnished, with an open house today] It's perfect!
Realtor: Oh, great!
Isabel Bigelow: I'll take it.

---

Connections

References Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993)

---

Soundtracks

"Witchy Woman"
(1971)
Written by Don Henley and Bernie Leadon
Performed by Kristin Chenoweth

User Reviews

Nicole Kidman More Than Holds Her Own With Will Ferrell.

Although it was not quite what I expected, Bewitched was not as bad as I have been led to believe, either. I am guessing that Will Ferrell is spreading himself a little too thin, as this movie was not as funny as his movies usually are. I did enjoy a couple of genuine, hearty laughs from this film, but again, not as many as expected. With those expectations in mind, this movie might seem to fall a little flat, but looking at the movie as a whole, it was still a delightful, little comedy that I enjoyed. Sure, it was not Bewitched, the sitcom, but it simply used the television series as somewhat of a guide line to go by. The story is a bit confusing when trying to compare to the show but is fine otherwise.

Jack Wyatt (Ferrell) is a down and out, nearly washed-up actor that has many bombs to his credit. He hatches a plan to remake the TV series "Bewitched", with himself in the starring role as Darren. The main difference between the remade TV show and the original is that Darren would be the focus and not Samantha, so for this reason, Jack decides he wants an unknown actress for the role, one he can virtually walk all over without knowing any better.

Isabel Bigelow (Nicole Kidman, who is perfect for the role) is a naive witch who has just decided that she no longer wants to live her life getting everything she wants at the snap of her fingers and chooses to live more "normal", against the wishes of her father, Nigel Bigelow (Michael Caine).

Eventually, after many auditions, Jack runs into Isabel and is convinced she is perfect for the role. She is hesitant at first but decides to do the show. Everything is going fine until Isabel overhears Jack talking with the producers about how well the plan was going and this is where the fun begins. The scorned witch unleashes hell on poor Jack in many embarrassing situations.

We are even treated to cameos by Aunt Clara (Carole Shelley) and Uncle Arthur (Steve Carell). I am not sure how Uncle Arthur fit into the story other than to get Carell to do some hilarious stuff but Aunt Clara is actually Isabel's Aunt Clara, meant to be a coincidence. The resemblance between Carole Shelley and the original Aunt Clara, Marion Lorne, was absolutely uncanny. I was convinced she was the original, right down to her voice.

Overall, if you do not shoot your expectations too high, this is a nice little comedy featuring Ferrell, with Nicole Kidman more than holding her own with him. Isabel was a lovable and cute character. Bewitched did have a few surprises and was worthy of watching. 7/10