28 September
An Art Story, From the Netherlands to Burgazada… 
September 28, 2026 An Art Story, From the Netherlands to Burgazada…
September 25, 2026 The Eggplant´s culinary journey woven into Jewish history
September 25, 2026 The Holiday of Sukkot
September 18, 2026 Gamze Terra and A Warm Gaze
September 14, 2026 President Erdoğan Extended Greetings for Rosh Hashanah
Practical Magic 2: A Nostalgic Return to Magic, Family, and Growing Up
September 29, 2026
By Bessy ADUT
The Magic Is Back
There is something wonderfully nostalgic about returning to the world of Practical Magic. Seeing Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman together again, two actresses many of us grew up watching, immediately brings back memories of the original 1998 film. Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing also return, while a younger generation of performers brings new energy to the Owens family story.
Directed by Susanne Bier and written by Akiva Goldsman, Georgia Pritchett, and Kelly Marcel, Practical Magic 2 brings the Owens family back to the screen and once again places its complicated relationship with magic at the center of the story. The sequel brings together familiar faces with younger talent, including Joey King, Lee Pace, Maisie Williams, and Xolo Maridueña, creating a bridge between the characters audiences remember and a new generation stepping into their world.
The Owens family curse is once again at the center of the story. The women of the family have spent generations living with the consequences of a spell that has affected their ability to love without fear of losing the people closest to them. Sally and Gillian believe they have put the past behind them, but the younger generation finds itself pulled back into the family's magical history.
Without giving away the major turns, the story becomes a search for answers about where the curse came from and whether it can finally be broken. A mysterious book and a journey into the family's past reveal that breaking a curse is not simply about magic. It is also about understanding the people who came before you and deciding whether you are willing to change the future.
The chemistry between Bullock and Kidman remains one of the movie's pleasures. Their relationship still feels like the emotional center of the story, and seeing them share the screen again is part of what makes the sequel so enjoyable. Their sisterhood is not presented as perfect. They disagree, make mistakes, and sometimes try to protect each other in ways that create new problems. But underneath all of that is a deep bond that has survived decades.
The visual world works just as well. The magical atmosphere, the family home, and the darker elements surrounding the curse give the film the cozy fantasy feeling that fans of the original will recognize.
A Story About Love, Family and Breaking the Curse
What makes Practical Magic 2 more than simply a nostalgic return is the way it connects the supernatural curse to very human relationships.
Love is at the center of the story, but not only romantic love. There is the love between sisters, between mothers and daughters, between family members, and between people who are trying to protect one another. The curse creates a fear around love itself, making the question of whether it can finally be broken much more emotional than simply defeating a piece of magic.
The younger characters are discovering who they are and learning about their family's heritage, while the older characters have to confront the consequences of decisions made years earlier. The balance between the generations works well, allowing the sequel to honor the characters we already know while giving the younger performers room to become part of the Owens story.
The movie also explores an interesting question: Can you really protect someone by keeping the truth from them?
Sally's attempts to shield the younger generation from the Owens curse come from love, but hiding their magical heritage ultimately leaves them unprepared when the past catches up with them. That creates some of the film's more emotional family conflicts. The story suggests that sometimes protecting the people we love means trusting them with the truth rather than deciding for them what they should know.
And ultimately, the story is building toward the possibility of breaking the Owens curse once and for all. I won't reveal how that happens, but the resolution connects back to the movie's larger themes of family, sacrifice, love, and letting go of the past.
This is a coming-of-age story, but it is also an aging story. The younger characters are figuring out who they want to become, while the older characters are learning that it is never too late to confront the past or make peace with choices that shaped their lives.
Passing the Magic to a New Generation
Perhaps the most enjoyable part of Practical Magic 2 is watching the original stars share the screen with a younger generation. There is something satisfying about seeing Bullock and Kidman return to characters associated with so many people's childhoods and early adulthood, while new performers begin creating their own place within the story.
That is where the nostalgia works best. The movie does not simply ask audiences to remember the past. It allows the past and present to exist together.
The original Practical Magic is still the better movie for me. The first film has a particular charm that is difficult to recreate, and no sequel can completely duplicate the feeling of discovering that world for the first time. But that does not mean I would not watch another sequel.
In fact, Practical Magic 2 is exactly the kind of movie I would happily return to. It is a guilty pleasure, the kind of film you can sit back and enjoy for the nostalgia, the performances, the relationships, the magic, and the family dynamics without needing it to be perfect.
My one major criticism is the ending. It feels a little too long and begins to drag after the emotional resolution has essentially arrived. I found myself wishing the movie would wrap things up a little sooner. The extra time does not completely derail the film, but it does soften some of the momentum it had built.
Still, Practical Magic 2 is a sweet, nostalgic family movie with romance, fantasy, and just enough magic to make the journey enjoyable. It understands that audiences who loved the original have grown older too, and it gives them a story that reflects that passage of time.
Sometimes growing older does not mean leaving the magic behind. Sometimes it means seeing it differently. And sometimes, you just want to return to a guilty pleasure that reminds you why you loved the magic in the first place.
