Advertising executive Darrin Stephens (Dick York) and his new wife Samantha
(Elizabeth Montgomery) are as happy as any newlyweds can be. They’re
excited to move into their first home and begin their life together. The only
hitch is that Samantha happens to be a witch. A fact that Darrin is unaware
of. As the couple adjust to their new life in suburbia, they must deal with
nosy neighbors, Samantha's magical family heritage, and the challenges of
married life.
Wacky hijinks ensue.
Shocking as it may be, I had never seen an episode of Bewitched
before I requested it to review. I knew that several of my friends were fans
of the show, so I asked for it on their recommendation. Sitting down to watch
it, I was pleasantly surprised as I found the show to hold up surprisingly
well considering its age- outside of a few “women are good for being
housewives” moments - though Samantha is given plenty of opportunities
to show her independent nature. The show was silly, good-natured fun and the
episodes were well written and frequently very funny. Excellent performances
abound. Elizabeth Montgomery is immensely appealing and perfectly cast as
Samantha. She gets the opportunity to show off a wide range of emotions throughout
the course of the season and she pulls it off exquisitely. Plus, who else
can wiggle her nose like she can? Dick York is saddled with the role of straight-man
to a cast a eccentric characters, and he does an admirable job, though he
is overshadowed by Samantha, which is as it should be. Other standouts include
scene-stealer Agnes Moorehead as Samantha’s mother Endora and Alice
Pearce as the Stephens’ snooping neighbor Gladys Kravitz.
One aspect of the show the surprised me were the special effects. They are
in constant use demonstrating Samantha’s powers and they hold up surprisingly
well. They are obviously low tech and fairly primitive by today’s standards,
but for what they are they work remarkably well and are a perfect fit for
the show’s goofy tone.
While often criticized for its portrayal of women as subservient to men,
I see Bewitched as something of a milestone in its depiction
of women. While Samantha promises to give up her powers and settle into a
role as housewife- she does no such thing. Her husband Darrin is seen as somewhat
of a buffoon in the show; Samantha is obviously the smarter, more talented
of the two; she’s the one who has the real power in their relationship.
In episodes such as “Help, Help, Don’t Save Me,” in which
Samantha suggests slogans for an ad campaign that are superior to Darrin’s,
we see Sam having an influence outside of the home. At the end of the episode,
when Darrin suddenly gains inspiration to write the perfect slogan, he believes
himself to be the source but we know that it’s really Samantha pulling
the strings. Throughout the show, Sam uses her powers to get her own way and
to make improvements to the world around her, despite her husband’s
objections. As a result, she is always seen as the one with the brains, power
and common sense. Yet, at the same time she is still relegated to the role
of housewife, forced to stay at home and “give up” her powers.
She is content to give up having all the power in the world simply to be the
wife of a mortal. One step forward and one step back, as they say.
Moreso, the influence of a show like Bewitched is still
felt in television today. I see it as an early predecessor to shows like Buffy
the Vampire Slayer; with it’s depiction of an empowered woman
with supernatural powers, the use of the magical to explore real life issues,
in a lighthearted way - one episode, “The Witches Are Out”, explores
the negative impact of stereotypes while several other episodes make reference
to the fact that Samantha and Darrin are in a “mixed” marriage
(she’s a witch and he’s a mortal).
The first season of beloved 1960s sitcom Bewitched comes
to DVD in a nice package from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The
episodes, 36 in total, are split up over four discs. The picture is in excellent
condition; Sony obviously spent some time working on their presentation for
this set. However, special features are in somewhat short supply.
First, is a short featurette about the making of Bewitched
entitled “The Magic Unveiled.” It gives quite a few interesting
tidbits of behind the scenes info and trivia making for an enjoyable viewing,
but it’s not something you;d watch more than once. For instance, Samantha
and Darrin were the first television couple to sleep in a single bed. On the
downside, it’s short- running a total of 15 minutes or so, and it’s
divided up over the first two discs.
On disc three, there’s “Magic and Mishaps,” a short feature
detailing various mistakes and continuity errors on the show. It’s somewhat
amusing, but not all that substantial and again, nothing you’d find
yourself returning to.
Also included, on disc four, are several trailers for various television
shows and films, including the new remake of Bewitched coming out this summer,
starring Nicole Kidman and Will Farrell.
Packaged with the DVD is a free ticket to see Bewitched in
theaters, a nice added incentive to buy the set if you’re curious to
see the film.
More substantial bonus features would have improved this set, but it’s
still a nice presentation of a beloved television classic. Hopefully Sony
will incorporate them into future season releases.
** Note** Sony is releasing the first season of Bewitched
in both its original black-and-white presentation as well as a colorized version.
This review refers to the black-and-white edition.
The Show Score: B+
Special Features Score: C
Overall DVD Score: B
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