Practical Magic 2 Review: Family Is the Real Magic

Nearly three decades after Practical Magic first introduced audiences to the Owens sisters, Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are back as Sally and Gillian.

Considering how beloved the 1998 film has become in the years since its release, returning to this world was always going to be a difficult spell to cast.

Practical Magic 2 does not recapture everything that made the original so special, but it makes one decision that ultimately saves it: instead of simply remaking the first movie, it allows the Owens family to move forward.

The sequel finds Sally and Gillian dealing with the next generation of Owens women as Sally’s daughters, Kylie and Antonia, are now adults.

After spending years trying to protect them from both their magical heritage and the family’s infamous curse, Sally is forced to confront the reality that neither can remain hidden forever.

Kylie, played by Joey King, becomes particularly central after her boyfriend Gideon is critically injured, sending the family on another attempt to confront the curse that has followed the Owens women for generations.

It is a familiar foundation, but thankfully, Practical Magic 2 does not simply repeat the original with younger characters.

That may be the film’s smartest choice. There are obvious callbacks, returning locations and plenty of nostalgia, including the Owens house, midnight margaritas and familiar music.

But the sequel is far more interested in exploring what this family looks like after decades of change. Even audience reactions have singled out the decision not to make the movie a carbon copy of its predecessor as one of its strengths.

Family has always been important to Practical Magic, but here it becomes the center of almost everything.

The magic, romance and curse provide the plot, yet the movie is ultimately about generations of Owens women trying to protect one another, sometimes to their own detriment.

Sally’s decision to hide the truth from her daughters comes from love, but it also creates consequences when they are eventually forced to confront a history they were never allowed to understand.

The story expands beyond the bond between Sally and Gillian to examine mothers, daughters, sisters and aunts, creating a larger portrait of what it means to inherit both the joys and burdens of a family.

That emphasis gives the sequel some of its most emotionally effective moments.

Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest return as Franny and Jet, while King and Maisie Williams step in as the next generation.

The ensemble makes the Owens family feel lived-in, and the film is at its best when everyone is allowed to simply exist together rather than racing toward the next supernatural development.

The original’s emotional center was sisterhood, and Practical Magic 2 wisely expands that idea into something more generational.

Of course, the biggest draw is still Bullock and Kidman. Both are fantastic.

Bullock slips effortlessly back into Sally’s cautious, protective nature while giving the character the weight of everything she has experienced since audiences last saw her.

She remains the emotional anchor of the movie, and Bullock is particularly good at showing how Sally’s desire to protect her family can sometimes become an obstacle to letting them live their own lives.

Kidman is equally magnetic as Gillian. The chemistry between the two remains one of the movie’s greatest assets, with their comedic rhythm and natural affection immediately making it believable that these are still the same sisters audiences fell in love with decades ago.

Their connection is strong enough to carry some of the film’s weaker stretches.

Unfortunately, Gillian feels surprisingly underutilized.

For a movie whose return has been marketed so heavily around Bullock and Kidman, there simply is not enough for Kidman to do. Gillian remains important to the family dynamic, but the story increasingly shifts toward Sally and Kylie.

That makes sense for the generational story the sequel wants to tell, yet it comes at the expense of one of the franchise’s most compelling characters. Every time Kidman takes control of a scene, it becomes difficult not to wish the screenplay had given her more.

The film also struggles with its pacing. At 130 minutes, it occasionally feels longer than necessary, particularly as the story moves into its more complicated supernatural mythology.

There are moments when the plot becomes busier than the characters need it to be. The original had its own tonal peculiarities, but its combination of romance, comedy, darkness and witchy fun gave it an unmistakable personality.

The sequel leans further into eerie supernatural territory, sacrificing some of the playful energy associated with the first film.

Still, there is enough charm here to make the return worthwhile.

Practical Magic 2 is not as effortlessly enchanting as its predecessor, and it probably could have used more Gillian, more fun, better effects and a tighter story. But it also understands that nostalgia alone is not enough reason to make a sequel.

Seeing Sally and Gillian again matters because their lives and their family have continued.

After 28 years, the Owens women have changed. Their family has grown. Their problems have evolved. The magic feels different because their lives are different.

Practical Magic 2 may not cast quite the same spell as the original, but when it focuses on the women at the center of this family and the love that keeps bringing them back to one another, there is still plenty of magic left.

Practical Magic 2 is now playing in theaters!

 

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