Bewitched
Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell star in an offbeat comedy based the original Elizabeth Montgomery Bewitched TV series.
Rather than being just a straight redo of the TV series, the storyline centers around a remake of the original TV show. Kidman — who plays a real witch in the movie but, uh, not in the remake of the TV show — desires to function in the “normal” mortal world of humans. I guess that world would include the one with the Ron Perlmaneque Will Ferrell who plays an out-of-luck actor trying to revive his movie career after a series of box-office stinkers.
In the movie Will is cast as the Darren character from Bewitched and the smitten Kidman is chosen to play Samantha.
Despite the mildly confusing storyline accented by an ill-defined relationship between Michael Caine — Kidman’s warlock father — and Shirley MacLaine who plays the TV character Endora, along with a horrific uncle Arthur impersonation by Steve Carell, both Kidman and Ferrell shine.
Both of the characters — uh, the movie characters and not the TV characters — are played with earnest adolescent verve. Kidman, a fetching wide-eyed innocent and Ferrell, his standard goonish teen clown.
It’s hard to resist comparing the love-yearning movie Samantha character with Kidman’s own personal life after her public breakup with the love psycho Tom Cruise.
Overall a good mindless movie for Kidman and Ferrell fans.