Bell Book and Candle

Bell Book and Candle

Staid, secure publisher James Stewart leads a quiet life until he meets his bewitching downstairs neighbor, Kim Novak. John Van Druten's lighthearted Broadway comedy becomes a lush if lightweight romantic vehicle for Stewart and Novak, who would reunite for Hitchcock's Vertigo the next year. Novak is at her best as a Greenwich witch halfway between the worlds of magic and mortals, looking after her dotty aunt (Elsa Lanchester) and mischievous warlock brother (Jack Lemmon) as they keep their skills in practice. Novak's specialty is making men fall for her, but it's a one-way street: when a witch falls in love, she loses her powers. Director Richard Quine gives the witches an almost beatnik sensibility, a real Greenwich Village subculture hanging out in underground clubs and smart curio shops. Elegantly photographed in rich, glowing colors by James Wong Howe, Bell, Book and Candle is a fantasy world in New York set to a funky bongo-laced jazz score by George Duning. Quine's gliding camera is somewhat marred by abrupt editing, but his handling of actors is superb, in particular Novak, whose mysterious beauty masks inner turmoil and romantic yearnings. Ernie Kovacs appears as a wry author whose specialty is the supernatural, and Hermione Gingold is suitably florid as a witch elder with a penchant for theatricality. For once in his life Stewart is actually upstaged by the slyly comic performances around him. --Sean Axmaker

Production: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
  Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.9
Rotten Tomatoes:
75%
APPROVED
Year:
1958
106
2,577 Views

Share your thoughts on Bell Book and Candle's quotes with the community:

0 Comments

    Quote of the Day Today's Quote | Archive

    Would you like us to send you a FREE inspiring quote delivered to your inbox daily?

    Please enter your email address:

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this movie page to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Bell Book and Candle Quotes." Quotes.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.quotes.net/movies/bell_book_and_candle_quotes_922>.

    Know another quote from Bell Book and Candle?

    Don't let people miss on a great quote from the "Bell Book and Candle" movie - add it here!

    Browse Quotes.net

    Quiz

    Are you a quotes master?

    »
    "Not all those who wander are lost."
    A Agatha Christie
    B J. R. R. Tolkien
    C Marl Twain
    D Maya Angelou