Old-fashioned, never-never-land fable about a mysterious woman who comes to a small town to claim an inheritance, specifically, the town's notorious haunted house. She sets up a shop full of potions and gemstones and charms, which does not go down well with the mayor's pompous wife (and tellingly, the only fat woman in the entire cast). This chubby busybody, straight out of a 1940s comedy, is convinced the new arrival is a witch (she does own a black cat and an antique broom) and spends the rest of the film trying to drive her out of town. Meanwhile, the newcomer performs a series of subtle good deeds that help various town folk with problems ranging from sterility to bullies. This Hallmark movie bears more than a passing resemblance to "Bell Book and Candle," and in fact the reputed witch names her New Age-y store Bell Book and Candle. The delectable Catherine Bell plays the mysterious woman, a woman similar to the character played by Kim Novak in "Bell Book and Candle." Since this is a Hallmark TV movie, Bell has to rein in her incredible sensuality, but she's still quite a dish even while playing more of a Mary Poppins character. I got a kick out of the cover for this one, which shows Bell grasping what appears to be a long, black phallic object, while giving us a knowing smile. The object, if you look hard enough, is actually a very long broomstick. Familiar TV actor Chris Potter plays the local sheriff, a widower with two small children who is smitten by Bell at first sight. Spending an evening alone on a couch in front of a roaring fireplace, wineglasses in hand, Bell and Potter manage one chaste kiss -- no tussling in the sheets for these two. This is a Hallmark movie, after all. So a chaste kiss is all we get. Entertaining, low-key family movie that was shot in Canada.
Review of The Good Witch
