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 |
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 situation comedy Bewitched (1964), re-conceived as a starring vehicle for him 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 on Bewitched (1964). He becomes convinced she could play 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 imagined. Written by Sujit R. Varma
Nicole Kidman makes the whole wretched thing almost palatable. The, supposedly, inventiveness of this farce within a farce is hammered on with such lack of subtlety that, sometimes, you want to shout at the screen "Hey you! We're not brain dead! We got it! Move on! Will Ferrell is still a great TV comedian. How is it possible that nobody has told him that on the big screen less is more. Strangely, Nicole Kidman, the witch, is totally rooted in reality, we believe her. Will Ferrell, the mortal, is a loud caricature from beginning to end and we just can't get the attraction. There are some little perks however, Carole Shelley as Aunt Clara took me, thankfully, out of the movie and I spent at least 15 minutes asking myself where I've seen this actress before - The Odd Couple, one of the Pigeon sisters! Goodness! I was uncomfortable with Shirley MacLaine's cameo because I love her and I could only focus on the strange tightness in her face. I am a Kidmanite through and through that's why I go to see everything she does because I know that, even if she's involved in something quite beneath her, she manages to sparkle, to shine to surprise. Thank God for you Nicole.