To me, this movie is perfection.

the audience applauded

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

I Married a WitchThe hardest part about marrying a witch is getting her to wear a white wedding dress. Luckily, the sorceress in this romantic-comedy is open to other colors than black.When the spirit of burnt witch, Jennifer (Veronica Lake), is freed from the tree holding her captive, she's released on Salem in the 1940s. Eventually Jennifer encounters the descendant of the puritan (Fredric March) she cursed to never find true love, only to find him vying for governorship, and engaged to the daughter (Susan Hayward) of his biggest financial supporter.In a twist of fate, however, the enchantress ends up falling for the candidate on the day of his wedding.An old Hollywood romance with a dash of Paganism, this amiable albeit naïve witch's tale is surprisingly funny, but poorly acted on the part of its stunning starlet.Incidentally, when you divorce a witch she's entitled to half your life essence.Yellow Lightvidiotreviews.blogspot.ca

Burnt as a witch, Veronica Lake (Jennifer) and her father Cecil Kellaway (Daniel) put a curse on Fredric March (Wooley) and his descendants so that they will always be unlucky in love. The film concentrates on the present day as March is seeking election to office and is about to be married to his financial backer's daughter Susan Hayward (Estelle). However, the spirits of Lake and Kellaway assume human forms and start to cause trouble… The film is amusing and entertaining. It takes us through humorous scenes and ends on a funny note as Lake and March spend way too much time together. The supporting cast are excellent and the film's short length means it zips by. It's funny that the witch is called Jennifer as that is my wife's name. It's all unrealistic nonsense but this allows you to focus totally on the comedy without being sidetracked by a secondary serious plot.

Age does not dim this delightful fantasy. Now available on an excellent Criterion DVD, I Married a Witch is one of the most amusingly original movies to come out of Hollywood during the war years. In the 1960s, the movie was taken up by college students who soon elevated it to cult status. In the 1990s, the movie was still so popular with viewers that it became one of the very few black- and-white movies to be regularly broadcast on prime time TV. Why so popular? Well, for one thing the movie is hilariously funny. Why? The script is both novel and highly amusing and it's enacted by a superb cast. Admittedly, René Clair is the ideal director for this sort of vehicle. But would you believe Clair did his best to resist Paramount's insistence that the tile role was ideal for their number one female star, Veronica Lake. To his credit, Clair changed his mind during production and actually apologized to Veronica for expressing doubts to studio executives regarding her talent and suitability. In fact, Veronica never had a more satisfying role. She was absolutely perfect. Also adroitly cast are Fredric March (who makes a wonderfully thick-headed stooge), Susan Hayward (who plays a spoiled brat as to the manner born), plus Robert Benchley (side- splittingly droll as March's confidant) and Cecil Kellaway (in his best role ever as the fuzzy-brained wizard). Produced on a lavish scale, I Married a Witch is marvelous fun from start to finish.

We are shown various bits of history of the Wooley family through the ages. A twenty year old Veronica Lake is "Jennifer", who had put a curse on the Wooley family for all time. March is Wallace Wooley, the latest member of the family, who stops to save someone from a burning building. He meets "Jennifer"... the ghost. Some fun co-stars helping out - the low key Robert Benchley, Susan Hayward (will go on to win an Oscar 15 years later), and Jennifer's father ( Cecil Kellaway, from Postman...) There is a scene where Jennifer gets out of Wooley's bed as the housekeeper walks in, and the housekeeper is shocked - pretty rough stuff for 1942. All Wallace says is "I'll explain later." The pace of this is a little off; the basic story is good, but the acting and rapport between the actors is quite stilted. A couple demerits for that. Directed by Rene Clair, who, according to wikipedia, had worked in France, England, and then Hollywood. Story by Thorne Smith, who had also written the hugely successful "Topper". He seemed to be adept at working ghosts who speak with the living into his stories. In this one, everyone can see the ghost as she goes around causing trouble.