Welcome back to White Rose of Avalon, my Darlings. Today’s Siren Saturday post is a little bit different, as this one is a Siren Saturday post because I am discussing a film starring Silver Screen Siren Kim Novak. Obviously, this differs from other Siren Saturday posts I have done of late discussing Sirens or other Faery Women from folklore and legends. In this post, I will be discussing the film Bell Book and Candle. Now, I have discussed this film before, but this post is not focused on the lead character, instead being about why this is the ideal Annual Witchy Winter Rewatch!
For those who have not seen this film, it is a 1958 film starring Kim Novak (as stated above) and Jimmy Stewart. The inclusion of Jimmy Stewart as the male lead definitely adds to the Christmasy vibes of the film, given that he is also the lead of It’s a Wonderful Life and The Shop Around the Corner, both classic Holiday films. Not to mention, the majority of the film takes place in Winter, with plenty of snow and classic Wintery activities!
Bell Book and Candle begins on Christmas Eve by introducing Jimmy Stewart’s character, Shep Henderson, who has just moved into an apartment building owned by Kim Novak’s character, Gillian Holroyd, who both lives there and owns a shop selling antiquities in the first floor of the building. There is a great introduction to each of the primary players of the film, with Queenie, the eccentric aunt of Gillian (played by the iconic Elsa Lanchester, of Bride of Frankenstein fame) playing tricks on Shep and getting scolded by Gillian. Gillian’s brother Nicky (played by the hilarious Jack Lemmon) is introduced in the first scene at the Zodiac, a Witch nightclub where he works. Nicky is shown as goofy, loving to use his magic for trickery. Shep brings his fiancee, Merle Kittridge, to the Zodiac after hearing Gillian and Queenie discussing the place.
Gillian quickly recognizes that she had gone to college with Merle Kittridge, and the two did not have a pleasant history, as Merle reported Gillian for her habit of going to class barefoot, and Gillian retaliated with her magic to get under Merle’s skin. It is after realizing who Shep was engaged to that Gillian put aside her assertions that she does not go after other women’s lovers, as Merle herself was what Gillian described as a ‘Beau Snatcher.’ Of course, this leads to a love spell cast by Gillian on Shep, all of this having happened on that same Christmas Eve! We also get plenty of scenes with Gillian’s cat Pyewacket (who is her familiar and essential in her spellwork).
The film is a fun and sweet ride as Gillian begins to fall in love with Shep for real, which in the film’s universe means forsaking being a Witch. The plot unfolds with plenty of cute magical mishaps and Gillian and Shep enjoying the snowy Winter activities. I do not want to give away any more spoilers, in case you have not seen this film, as it is something I want to encourage my readers to watch for themselves (and it is on streaming services in the US right now, including Amazon Prime and Tubi, making it easy to find this Yuletide Season)! I will finish off this post by saying that the film includes many of the classic witchy tropes and plays them for laughs, which is very fun to see. Bell Book and Candle is the ideal film to watch for a Witchy Yuletide night in with loved ones. I highly recommend this film to anyone who loves snowy scenery, wants a fun Golden Age Hollywood film, and to any fans of Bewitched!
I hope you have enjoyed reading my little love letter to Bell Book and Candle, one of my ultimate favorite holiday films. Have you seen Bell Book and Candle? Do you want to watch it now? Is it one of your annual rewatches? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Note on Image: The image at the top of the post is one of the classic posters for the film. I found the poster on https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051406/.
LINK TO AVALONIAN ROSE FAERY MYSTERIES PATREON: patreon.com/AvalonianRoseFaeryMysteries
Further Watching
- Bell Book and Candle 1958