Practical Magic (1998) (sort of a movie review)

I’ve long had a soft spot in my heart for the 1998 movie “Practical Magic”, and what with news that there’s a sequel coming up later this year, with all four of the main actresses reprising their roles, paired with some insomnia, I decided to give it the old re-watch, just to see what I thought of it now. Beware: death of spouse; grief and depression; community hostility; bullying; domestic abuse; bit of copaganda. ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ “Practical Magic” is an adaptation of the novel of the same name, by Alice Hoffman; as I have not read, nor intend to read, the book, I cannot speak to that aspect of the film, and I’m judging exclusively what is on the screen. The basic premise is that there’s a family of witches, with varying degrees of power, all descended from one María Owens, who was sentenced to death by hanging in a small town in Massachusetts, à la Salem witch trials of the late 17th Century. Because trauma (and men), Maria ends up cursing herself, and her descendants, so that any man…