Product Description

Oscar®-winner Nicole Kidman (Best Actress in a leading role, The Hours, 2002) and wickedly funny Will Ferrell star as actors playing Darrin and Samantha on a remake of the television show "Bewitched" in this cleverly crafty comedy from director Nora Ephron (Sleepless in Seattle, You've Got Mail). Egomaniacal star Jack Wyatt (Ferrell) casts unknown Isabel (Kidman) as his co-star in order to monopolize the limelight and regain his top spot on Hollywood's A-list. When Isabel, a real witch, discovers Jack's self-centered scheme, she conjures a sidesplitting spell the mere mortal will never forget!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9925 in DVD
• Brand: SONY PICTURES HOME ENT
• Released on: 2005-10-25
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French
• Dubbed in: French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 102 minutes

Amazon.com
As one of many in the ongoing trend of resurrecting old TV shows and turning them into contemporary Hollywood product, Bewitched tries awfully hard to distinguish itself. It succeeds in lots of surprising ways, not least of which is the star power brought by Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell. Even if they don't create the kind of romantic chemistry that would have elevated the already high concept, they act as delightful foils to each other, but more often to themselves. The conceit of this Bewitched is that it's a self-reflexive look at the entertainment business, with Ferrell playing Jack Wyatt, an actor starring in an updated version of the classic TV show. Out of favor with the Hollywood elite and desperately in need of a hit, he insists on an unknown to play Samantha, as he wants the show to be about him, since if something doesn't come his way soon, he's going to be hearing a lot of no's, despite the yes-men surrounding him. While his agent (Jason Schwartzman in hilarious high Hollywood sleaze mode) gets him the "unknown Samantha" deal, it's Jack himself who discovers his own leading lady in the delightful figure of Isabel Bigalow (Kidman), who possesses just the right nose wiggle, not to mention other wiggles.

But wouldn't you know it, Isabel really is a witch, and exactly the kind of "good" witch trying to rely less on her magical powers that Samantha Stevens was back in her "real" world. Instead of a cranky mother like Endora, Isabel has a distinguished father, Nigel (Michael Caine) who lurks around her as a constant reminder that she can't be who she's not (a mere mortal), and she certainly can't be the star of some zany TV show. As the plot thickens and the movie's reflexivity grows more convoluted, Nigel falls for the non-witch actress who plays Endora (Shirley MacLaine), and Jack and Isabel fall for each other. Here's where the Ferrell/Kidman gel doesn’t quite become aspic, but her perkiness (I mean, come on, it is Nicole Kidman, for crying out loud) and his goofiness (Ferrell is at his peak of intelligent bumbling) are more than enough to make the entirety of the proceedings a delectable trifle. Director Nora Ephron has fun skewering her own business in the script she co-wrote with her sister Delia, and her eye for quality craft makes everything sparkle as it should. Even if we have yet to see the definitive remake of an old TV show on the big screen, at least Bewitched is well more than run-of-the-mill as so many adaptations have been, and so many will be. --Ted Fry

From The New Yorker
We are ever more besieged by attempts to turn ancient TV shows into modern movies, many of them disastrously dull. This one, directed by Nora Ephron and co-written with her sister Delia, courageously tries a different tack, and what we end up with is a disaster of another order entirely. Nicole Kidman plays not Samantha (as incarnated for all eternity by Elizabeth Montgomery) but a witch named Isabel, who, having landed in Los Angeles, just happens to win the role of Samantha in a new version of the original series. The point, one imagines, is to confront head-on the conundrum of trying to resurrect the Samantha legend; the result, sadly, is a flurry of in-jokes without the jokes. After a sprightly first ten minutes, the magic simply evaporates from the surface of the film, and one actor after another comes to grief: Will Ferrell overheats as a fading star called Jack, who fancies himself as a Darren de nos jours, while Shirley MacLaine is handed the part of Endora and pretty much abandoned to her fate. The only person who cheers you up is Michael Caine, who remains knowingly calm as the chaos descends. A disenchanting spectacle all around.-Anthony Lane -Anthony Lane
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Sweet and funny
In a seemingly endless sea of remakes which quickly (and rightfully) sink into oblivion, Bewitched deserves credit for at least putting a new spin on the formula. I can't imagine anyone but Nicole Kidman in the role of Isabel...she simply glows, you can't take your eyes off her. Will Ferrell delivers his usual goofy, over-the-top performance, which suits his character just fine. And at the heart of it all is a sweet and (mostly) old-fashioned love story. It also pays due reverence to its source, as Isabel keeps a picture of Elizabeth Montgomery in her dressing room, and wonders what the "real" Samantha would do. Sure, it's not perfect. In fact (minor spoiler alert!), I knocked off a whole star for the whole "Uncle Arthur" nonesense in the final act. But I laughed. A lot, in fact. I was delighted with Kidman's performance. And I left the film feeling pretty darn good. What more could you want?

For once, don't believe what the majority of critics have said. Bewitched is a great romantic comedy.

Dr Bombay, Dr. Bombay! Emergency, please take this film away!
Shame, shame, shame on Nora Ephron.

Bewitched, for many of us late blooming Baby Boomers is a television series that holds a warm place in our heart. Hollywood decides to milk it for its film potential (what with Hollywood being creatively bankrupt, this is no big surprise). The result - pure disaster!

Why?
Let me count the ways.....

The film is about how a studio is remaking "Bewitched" the television series, but they make Darrin the focus instead of Samantha. The lame actor playing Darrin casts an unknown for Samantha, but little does he know she (Nicole Kidman) is really a witch who only wants to be normal (just like the Samantha from the original television series). Now this unknown has never heard of Bewitched or Samantha (in the movie Kidman's character's name is Isabelle).

See how clever this is? Not!

Now, Isabelle has never heard about Bewitched before, yet she has a dotty old Aunt Clara who carries door knobs around in her pocket book (just like Aunt Clara on the old TV series). Bizarro world, huh?

And Isabelle has an eccentric Uncle Arthur just like the television series...(Fortunately he only shows up at the end of the film in order to completely finish it off).

Isabelle doesn't have a mother in the picture - only her father (Michael Caine, who sleep walks through his sad role). What about Endora you ask?

Well, Shirley MaClain plays Endora - only she is really playing an actress named Iris, who is playing Endora in the television series. Or is she just that?

Where's Dr. Bombay? What about Serina? Where's the witches council?

I'm sure that the producers thought this film might spark off a sequel. I sure hope not. This first film is so horrible it could turn people off to the charming television series from the 60's.

Michael Caine's "Daddy" keeps popping up on frozen food cartons and jars of dressing. In the television series, Maurice Evans' Daddy was a dignified Shakespeare quoting gentleman. Here, he is an Uncle Arthur knock off - which is weird since the producers bring in "uncle Arthur" later in the film.

Endora, as a character in the new television series, played by Iris something or other (actually played by MacClaine) is a ham actress of former fame, who may or may not really be a witch (although she doesn't know Isabelle). She's a joke - and not a funny one. Agnes Moorehead's Endora was never a joke.

The original television series succeeded so well, because the characters were clearly defined. It was very loosely based on the 1940's Veronica Lake film, "I Married a Witch". 1960's Bewitched used popular actors for the leads, but filled the supporting roles with well known, tried and true, well trained, dignified, and award winning character actors, like Agnes Moorehead - "Mother/Endora" (four times nominated for Academy Award), Maurice Evans - "Daddy"(Tony award winning Shakespearean stage actor), Marion Lorne (a fine radio actress), David White as Larry Tate (a reknowned stage actor);Estelle Winwood and Reta Shaw (character actors extrordinaire); Bernard Fox (Dr. Bombay); and Paul Lynde (Uncle Arthur).

It's a shame that the actors of merit in this film (Kidman, Caine, and MacClaine) are all wasted and play second fiddle to pitiful writing and sad direction and editing.

I really can't imagine a more horrible re-visioning of the charming 1960's television series.

This film doesn't deserve to even be associated with the name of that original series.

How Disappointing
I was anxiously waiting to see the video of Bewitched since I hadn't been able to see the movie when it was in the Theater. I was however a little taken back by the bad reviews it had received and couldn't understand how such star power of Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell along with Michael Caine and the rest of this cast could make something that would be so panned. But after seeing this movie I now understand. What a mess. It wasn't the actors that made this a mess but the director and whoever put this together. Nothing made sense. They introduce the fact that Iris (Shirley Mclean) is a witch and then never follow through or even confirm it except for one line from Uncle Arthur. They never explain how a supposed character from the original show (Uncle Arthur) shows up in real life. They introduce Aunt Clara, but when Isabelle reverses time she never shows back up?? Was Aunt Clara like Uncle Arthur and a character from the original show that comes to life??? I doen't even really think this movie deserved 1 star...but this system doesn't give the option of no stars. Do yourself a favor....Save your money and don't buy this movie....buy the second season of the original show and enjoy a classic.