Amy Perez

Copy Editor

28 years later the witchy fan favorite “Practical Magic” has found its way back to theaters for round two with its sequel, “Practical Magic 2,” this past week.

Just as it did in its predecessor, “Practical Magic 2” starts and ends in similar places expressing the same few sentiments, some of them being that there is strength in sisterhood, women empowerment and the importance of embracing your true self.

There were many reminders and lessons along the way, but one of the most important would be that life without the fear of loving and losing is no life at all. It is a reminder that nothing is permanent. Ultimately, love is meant to be felt just as life is meant to be lived, in all of their small or big moments rather than in the idea or hope that they will go on forever.

As a fan since “Practical Magic”’s opening day back in 1998, to see the sequel hit theaters 28 years later filled me with a sense of nostalgia and made me yearn for a time that felt simpler, but the sequel did not exactly provide that.

Although the movie held true to its quirky characters and brought many of them back to the cast such as Sandra Bullock as Sally, Stockard Channing as Aunt Franny, Nicole Kidman as Jilly and Dianne Weist as Aunt Jet, it could not beat the cozy midnight-margarita vibes of its counterpart. The sequel’s storyline did not completely sell this writer nor did the actors brought on to play Sally’s daughters Antonia and Kylie, who were played by Maisie Williams and Joey King. They seemed out of place and their acting was subpar.

“Practical Magic 2″‘s story line brought a darker tone to the Owens family history and their generational love curse created by one of their great grandmothers. The original “Practical Magic” felt more, well, practical. The concept seemed realistic and simple back then, where its sequel attempted to shoot for a flashier and more theatrical approach, almost as if trying to prove to this new generation that it was worthy of being watched on the big screen due to introducing some new tricks and digital effects which felt unnecessary.

There were too many moments where the characters spoke over one other, and it was hard to understand or keep up. I could see how they were trying to maintain some of the banter similar to the first movie, but it was a bit overdone. Not to mention some of the original characters had visible work done that was distracting at times to watch. To each their own, but it’s quite creepy when the performers’ mouths don’t move when they are supposed to.

This once whimsical, charming, witchy rom-com has lost its way. But as a fan I would still recommend watching, just for the sake of being a true fan of its other half and deciding one’s own worthiness of this sequel.

As Sally Owens suggests in both the original and sequel but with a little extra this time, “Always throw salt over your left shoulder, keep rosemary by your garden gate, plant lavender for good luck, and fall in love whenever you can…and live a little, live a lot.”