‘Practical Magic 2’ Is a Testament to the Power of Skin Care

My wife got me started on skin care this year. She’s a late starter herself, a now 45-year-old whose skin care routine once consisted only of virgin coconut oil at night and SPF in the morning. Her skin has always been amazing, but we’re not getting any younger, and it’s better late than never when it comes to skin care. These days, it’s a ritual: wash our face with water first in the morning, then we put toner, followed by a peptide booster, vitamin C serum, azelaic acid, snail mucin moisturizer (optional), and finally some SPF. Always SPF. At night, after we come home from being out, we wash our faces with cleanser, apply a peptide booster, NAD essence, eye cream, retinol, and then end with a Madeca cream. I’ve had fairly great skin myself, and I’d get one tiny zit maybe once or twice a year, but now I feel like I could reach my 60s and become one of those young-looking old Asian guy memes because my skin is glowing. It’s not a bad skincare routine, but after watching Practical Magic 2, I’d like to have what Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock are having because, girl, those two witches look fantastic.

Practical Magic came out in 1998, based on the book by Alice Hoffman about Sally and Gillian Owens, sisters descended from a long line of witches suffering from a curse that dooms every man they fall in love with. The film ended on a happy note, with Sally (Bullock) seemingly finding love again after losing her first husband and the father of her daughters to the Owens curse. We learn from the opening scene of the sequel that it wasn’t such a happy ending, after all, and Gary, the male romantic lead, had also up and died. The curse is still in full effect, which causes Sally to turn her back completely on magic and hide their family legacy of having superpowers from her two daughters, Kylie (Joey King) and Antonia (Maisie Williams). It’s been 28 years since the first film, but Kylie and Antonia are just in their 20s, and Sally and Gillian (Kidman) should be somewhere in their late 40s. 

Kidman and Bullock are 59 and 62, respectively, but play their roles convincingly, maybe with some mysterious combination of makeup, movie magic, and almost certainly the best skin care money can buy. Even Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest, who play the Owen aunts Franny and Jet, are 82 and 78 but look incredible. It’s probably called Practical Magic because of how all the Owens women magically look 20 years younger, which is a reflection of how far beauty products have come as well as Hollywood’s double standards when it comes to women’s physical appearances. Sean Penn is 66, but Nikki Glaser wasn’t wrong when she joked about him looking like a “sexy leather handbag”. Even if Hoffman hadn’t killed off Gary in the book, it would’ve been weird bringing back Aidan Quinn, because he looks like a proper, weathered 67-year-old. Instead, Sally is paired off with scholarly warlock Ian Wright, played by one of the sexiest men alive, Lee Pace, who’s 15 years younger than Bullock. A female lead with a significantly younger male romantic interest? It doesn’t even feel weird; how’s that for magic?

Ok, fine, let’s talk a little bit about the film’s plot, which generally follows Hoffman’s novel but removes a lot of supporting characters for simplicity. It’s a proper sequel that hits all the right notes for fans of the original, including callbacks like the deathwatch beetle, midnight margaritas, and a Mary Poppins scene. It’s the sequel nobody asked for, but fans of the cult classic didn’t know they needed. It starts off wonderfully but falters midway when you realize that the focus is on Kylie, whose boyfriend Gideon (Xolo Maridueña) gets into an accident and falls into a coma, and that Antonia is just a side character who doesn’t really figure into the story. It’s a failure in terms of continuing the theme of sisterhood. The book at least gives Antonia her own love interest, but Practical Magic 2 completely wastes Arya Stark, which is a shame, because pushing the sisters’ parallels to their mother and aunt would’ve been more interesting. There’s also the film’s main baddie, who comes from left field and pales in comparison to the first movie’s rock and roll zombie, Jimmy. It’s not a dealbreaker, but these hiccups certainly drop the film’s score a notch or two. Speaking of score, however, it gets bonus points for needle drops that include Olivia Rodrigo’s “The Cure,” :”Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac, and a cover of Mazzy Star’s “Fade Into You” by Gregory Alan Isakov.

Practical Magic 2 is a serviceable sequel that recaptures some but not all of the magic of the first film and is a pleasant enough reunion of the original’s stars with the notable exception of Evan Rachel Wood, who played the young Kylie. Wiest and Channing turn in lovely performances, and it’s never a bad thing to keep seeing both women still excelling in their craft. It’s a nice, albeit not strictly necessary, fleshing out of Hoffman’s world of magic. The book actually had a pair of queer relationships that would’ve been nice to see on film, but we’ll take what we can. If anything, Practical Magic 2 is a celebration of women laughing at the face of time’s passage. Tom Cruise shouldn’t be the only 64 year old acting like he’s still in his 30s. Women can play that game, too. It’s 2026, where 60 is the new 40, and there’s an entire generation of women who make growing old look good.

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