In the canon of great moments in cinema, it doesn’t get more iconic than the image of James Stewart and Kim Novak, atop an impossibly high building, caught in an embrace that functions as both an expression of passion and a cautionary prevention from falling to their death. This is taken from the incredible Vertigo, one of the few films that is almost universally considered to be the greatest ever made, gradually achieving that distinction as time as gone on. However, this isn’t the topic of discussion today – instead, we’re looking at something that may not be as well-known, but is still worth noting, especially considering it occurred the same year as Vertigo, and was a reunion for the two stars, who are playing radically different characters. Richard Quine was a remarkable director of solid, well-meaning comedies that may have been derivative and predictable, but afforded us so much entertainment, we can easily overlook how hackneyed they tend to be from time to time. His films were the diversions many of us needed on some occasions, and Bell, Book and Candle is one of his most beloved entries into his already prolific career. The kind of easygoing, fun-loving romantic comedy that pairs two notable stars and puts them through an effervescent story that is heavy on both the laughs and moments of delightful romance, this film is a triumph, and while it certainly doesn’t provide us with anything close to the originality or groundbreaking cinematic profundity of Hitchcock’s masterpiece that year, it’s a charming palate-cleanser for those who simply couldn’t get enough of the chemistry between Stewart and Novak, but wanted something somewhat less psychologically daunting, which is a perfectly adequate request, and something that Bell, Book and Candle provides in abundance.

The film is focused on two individuals who come to know each other when they become neighbours. Shep Henderson (James Stewart) is a middle-aged editor who works for a struggling book publisher, desperately trying to find his company’s next hit, which is made very difficult when audiences make it clear that they’d rather read poorly-written, sensationalist non-fiction, such as Magic in Mexico, a pulp, pseudo-biographical account of witchcraft in Central American, prioritizing such books over the more highbrow literature that Shep and his associates insist on publishing. Moving into a new building, he encounters Gillian (Kim Novak), the proprietor of the shop downstairs from his apartment, where she sells rare artefacts extracted from various corners of the world. They came to begrudgingly know each other – Shep is an impatient man who has very little time for those looking to distract him, which is made more difficult by the presence of Gillian’s cat, and her aunt, the meddling Queenie (Elsa Lanchester), both of whom are sent to bother Shep as a means to get him to become a part of the life of Gillian, who is secretly in love with him. What the unsuspecting man doesn’t know is that he’s stumbled into a family of witches, who have their sights set on him as their next victim, since Gillian has grown lonely and wants someone to love – and choosing the handsome but aloof Shep seems like a good plan for her. However, their relationship proves to be a lot more difficult, especially when his professional aspirations start to mingle with his head-over-heels adoration for Gillian, who does her best to maintain their love, but not even the strongest spell can distract him from the true desires of the heart.

It’s a familiar pattern – two iconic stars thrown together in a story that sees them simultaneously expressing their own distinct peculiarities as performers, while falling in love in-character, creating an unforgettable and often heartwarming portrayal of romance that may be entirely unrealistic, but still captivates our attention like very else possibly can. Bell, Book and Candle adds another level of implausibility to the proceedings by introducing the over-arching theme of witchcraft, which isn’t necessarily the most original concept (since there was already the tremendous Golden Age comedy, I Married a Witch, which has some fascinating correlation with this film, both tonally and thematically), and it makes for truly compelling viewing, especially when it comes to the smaller, intricate details of the text that makes it such a compulsively endearing work of fiction. Quine had a tendency to take on some fascinating stories and execute them with a precision that made them wonderfully upbeat, even when they were traversing some difficult emotional territory. This is a very traditional film in this regard, and it finds a lot of its humour in the smaller moments of humanity, rather than the more excessive sequences of broad comedy. One of the more simple forays into the romantic comedy genre from this era, Bell, Book and Candle is very much influenced less by excess, being driven by a sentimentality that positions all the most important material in the intimate moments between characters – it gives it an easygoing, simple tone that focuses on the characters, developing them and giving them the attention they’re not often afforded in a multitude of other similarly-themed films.

The aspect that does tend to make Bell, Book and Candle such an endearing film is this precise approach to bringing its characters to life. Stewart and Novak were cast expressly as a result of their incredible chemistry in Vertigo, with their work reflecting a keen understanding of each other as performers, and an even more compelling ability to bring out the very best in the other actor, developing strong characters that are far more than just cardboard cutouts of what someone believes such individuals are like. Both actors are tremendous, and are having a great deal of fun with the roles, making it a perfect complement to the Hitchcock masterpiece, as they’re now allowed to let loose and play more upbeat characters, free from the constraints of the brilliant but psychologically-exhausting machinations that they were better known for. There’s a soulfulness to their performances that just never quite abates, coming through in their impeccable chemistry, but also in their moments apart from each other – and it would be foolish to not acknowledge the trio of supporting players that do their part in making Bell, Book and Candle so captivating. Jack Lemmon (well on his way to establishing himself as a legend) is giving a very dedicated performance as Novak’s free-spirited brother, while Elsa Lanchester is a riot as her scene-stealing aunt, with the horror legend proving herself to be very gifted when it comes to comedy as well. Ernie Kovacs is a scene-stealer as the dry and meandering author who enters into the film quite late, but leaves a profound impression as he goes along. Bell, Book and Candle thrives on how strong the cast is, which makes it quite an endearing piece that depends very much on the entertaining performances given by its cast.

Put together using the framework of any old-fashioned romantic comedy, with layers of surreal humour added to it to give it a certain sense of abstract thinking (which makes for a very interesting experiment at times), Bell, Book and Candle has a wonderful heartfulness that allows it to flourish into a truly captivating work that never takes itself all that seriously. It’s certainly not a film that will appeal to everyone – it is ultimately dated, carrying many of the same stylistic quirks and narrative idiosyncrasies of the majority of romantic comedies from this era, and is barely experimental beyond the theme of witchcraft that drives most of the film. However, it’s in these traditions that Bell, Book and Candle is it at its most enduring and fascinating, since it has some conventions that bring a sense of warmth and comfort, the kind that we don’t often see in contemporary romances, which are often more focused on hitting all the right jokes and being incredibly conceptual in both theory and execution. This film needs nothing more than a pair of charismatic performances, a wonderfully-written script and a dedication to a premise that could have easily have been considered hackneyed had it not been for the wonderful commitment brought to making something entertaining. For these reasons alone, Bell, Book and Candle is a triumph, and just the dose of well-meaning fun we all need from time to time.