Bell Book and Candle (1958)
Dir: Richard Quine Comedy / Romance / Fantasy
|
Overview
Bell Book and Candle is an American comedy romance film first released in 1958,
directed by Richard Quine.
The film stars James Stewart, Kim Novak, Jack Lemmon, Ernie Kovacs and Hermione Gingold.
It has also been released under the title: Bell, Book and Candle.
Our overall rating for this film is: good.
Synopsis
One Christmas Eve in New York, Gillian Holroyd suddenly discovers that
she is attracted to her neighbour, Shepherd Henderson. Of course,
he is too preoccupied with his work as a book publisher to notice
her. And even if he did, what use would it be? Gillian
isn’t mere flesh and blood. Like her mischievous brother Nicky
and her aunt Queenie, she is a witch, incapable of loving another in
the way that humans do. But when she learns that Shepherd is
shortly to marry a college rival of hers, Gillian cannot contain
herself. She casts a spell on Shepherd which compels him to fall
in love with her. She soon realises that love and magic are a
dangerous combination...
Film Review
After their highly praised appearance together in Hitchcock’s Vertigo (1958), Kim Novak and James
Stewart are reunited once more in this quirky romantic comedy which,
whilst dated and a tad predictable, has retained some of its
charm. Novak and Stewart are joined by two other notable
performers who end up stealing the show – Elsa Lanchester, who is most
famous for her role in James Whale’s Bride of Frankenstein (1935),
and Jack Lemmon, just before he became a major Hollywood star.
The film has some similarities with René Clair’s 1942 film I
Married A Witch and may have partly inspired the popular
1960s TV series Bewitched.
© James Travers 2008 Write a review for this film... User Comments
What do you think of this film?
Related links
More American ComedyMore American Fantasy Recent DVD releases |
Credits
Similar films:
If you like this film you may also like the following: The Bishop’s Wife (1947) Born Yesterday (1950) Carousel (1956) Charade (1963) The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) His Girl Friday (1940) Jungle Book (1942) Pillow Talk (1959) The Raven (1963) Sabrina (1954) Star Wars (1977) The Talk of the Town (1942) White Christmas (1954) The Wizard of Oz (1939) |

