LOS ANGELES — Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are earning near-unanimous praise from film critics for their performances in “Practical Magic 2,” even as early reviews for the long-awaited sequel to the 1998 cult classic have landed considerably more mixed on the film as a whole.
The sequel, which arrived in theaters Thursday, reunites Bullock and Kidman as sister witches Sally and Gillian Owens nearly 28 years after the original’s release. Directed by Susanne Bier from a screenplay by Akiva Goldsman, Georgia Pritchett and Kelly Marcel, the film is based on Alice Hoffman’s 2021 novel “The Book of Magic” and takes the Owens family to the United Kingdom for a new setting, swapping the original’s quest to vanquish the vengeful spirit of Gillian’s murdered ex-boyfriend for a globe-spanning adventure centered on protecting and embracing the family’s magic.
As of Tuesday afternoon, ahead of the film’s release, “Practical Magic 2” held a 32% Rotten Tomatoes score, with GoldDerby later reporting the figure had settled at 35%, alongside a Metacritic score of 46. Those numbers land roughly in line with the original 1998 film’s own critical reception at the time, which scored 30% on Rotten Tomatoes and 48 on Metacritic, even though “Practical Magic” went on to develop a devoted fan following over the ensuing decades, reflected in its strong 73% Rotten Tomatoes audience score.
Despite the tepid critical consensus surrounding the film overall, virtually every review singled out Bullock and Kidman’s chemistry and performances as the sequel’s clear highlight. Angie Han of The Hollywood Reporter wrote that “if the jokes seem a bit more exaggerated this time and their bond much less complex, the palpable affection coursing between Kidman and Bullock remains as sturdy a foundation as ever.”
Adrian Horton of The Guardian, who gave the film 3 out of 5 stars, offered a similarly qualified but ultimately positive assessment.
“The midnight margarita redux may feel obligatory, but there’s just enough magic here to still, despite everything, cast a peculiar spell,” Horton wrote.
Brian Truitt of USA Today praised director Bier’s willingness to lean into darker material within the story.
“Bier, like Griffin Dunne previously, isn’t afraid to get a little dark and weird with the magic,” Truitt wrote, referring to the original film’s director.
Not every reviewer found enough to salvage the overall experience. ComingSoon’s Jonathan Sim delivered one of the sharper critiques of the film’s underlying premise.
“No amount of midnight margaritas can save a sequel with a doomed premise,” Sim wrote. “Practical Magic 2 is a sequel that struggles to justify its own existence, largely because it has to undo nearly everything that made the ending of the original so satisfying.”
Collider’s Taylor Gates offered an equally pointed assessment of the film’s shortcomings.
“Practical Magic 2 lacks the charm, whimsy, and heart that made the original film a classic; instead, it’s a mess, with a plot both convoluted and bland,” Gates wrote.
Variety’s review similarly noted that while the sequel revisits elements that made the original beloved among its core fan base, it fails “to correct the flaws that made everyone else all but forget it for three decades.” Consequence gave the film a C+ grade, writing that “even when cursed with a substandard script, Bullock and Kidman still cast quite the spell.”
Beyond its two lead stars, the sequel introduces Joey King and Maisie Williams as Sally’s daughters, Kylie and Antonia Owens, while welcoming back original cast members Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing, who reprise their roles as the sisters’ eccentric aunts. Lee Pace also joins the cast in a new role that has drawn specific attention from critics. IndieWire’s review highlighted the romantic subplot involving Pace’s character and Bullock’s Sally, describing the two actors as “remarkably comfortable together” on screen, even while noting Bullock has shared more overtly combustible on-screen chemistry with other leading men in her career. The review praised how the film handles a conversation between the two characters about the terrifying prospect of Sally putting herself out there romantically again, arguing the moment shifts the Owens family curse from “a mystical conceit” into “a brutally ordinary challenge that faces so many wonderful people.”
That same review credited both Bullock and Kidman for their sustained commitment to the characters across nearly three decades, writing that it’s “impossible to overlook the accumulated lives of the real women reviving these characters” and that both actresses “deserve their flowers for not only starring in the 1998 film but evolving with its story.”
Rotten Tomatoes’ own roundup of early reactions characterized the sequel as offering fans more than enough reason to return to theaters despite its flaws, framing the film’s appeal as rooted primarily in the simple pleasure of seeing Sally and Gilly reunited on screen regardless of setting or plot specifics.
“Fans of this franchise will be happy enough just to see Sally and Gilly again in any setting,” the outlet’s summary of early reviews noted.
Despite the mixed-to-negative critical reception, the film’s commercial prospects remain closely tied to the sustained cultural affection the original “Practical Magic” has built over the years, particularly among fans who have embraced the film as a beloved entry in both the witch movie genre and broader autumn-season comfort viewing traditions. With “Practical Magic 2” now in theaters, its ultimate box office performance and audience reception, distinct from the largely lukewarm critical response, will offer a clearer picture of whether that decades-long fan devotion can carry the sequel to commercial success despite its rockier critical reviews.
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