'Bell, Book and Candle' - Movie Review

I got into a discussion with the friend who recommended "The Canterville Ghost," and suggested he might like the similar "I Married a Witch." He said that that movie and "Bell, Book and Candle" were responsible for the existence of "Bewitched." I'd spotted the similarities between "I Married a Witch" and "Bewitched," but I hadn't previously known about this movie, so I gave it a try.

Kim Novak stars as Gillian Holroyd, a witch living in Greenwich Village (presumably in 1958, when the movie was released). She takes a fancy to her new neighbour (Jimmy Stewart in his last romantic lead, as Shep Henderson) - and when she discovers that he's engaged to a college roommate of hers (Janice Rule) that she particularly dislikes, she uses a spell to make him fall in love with her. But things go awry in a number of ways for them: she truly falls for him, and he finds out about witchcraft and isn't happy about what's happened to him.

"I Married a Witch" is probably the better film: both individually and together I prefer Veronica Lake and Frederic March to Novak and Stewart, and this isn't quite as well written. It's charming and nice enough, but don't rush out to see it ...