"The Good Witch" is the first of a series of five movies starring Catherine Bell as mysterious Cassie Nightingale. The movies are Hallmark Original productions.
Catherine Bell (Denise Sherwood, “Army Wives”) is a raven-haired enchantress with a
hint of magic. Chris Potter (“Hairspray,” “Young & The Restless”) costars as Police Chief Jake Russell. Jake is a widower with two children who is captivated by his new neighbor Cassandra ‘Cassie’ Nightingale (Catherine Bell).
Cassie moved into the community of Middleton to live in the infamous "Gray House," a house long rumored to be haunted. The newcomer also opened a new-age shop named Bell, Book and Candle. The townspeople speculate about the new woman in town because she is different.
Cassie is a bewitching charmer, so she wins over many of the people she meets. She has a magic touch with children and Jake’s kids, Brandon (Matthew Knight) and Lori (Hannah Endicott-Douglas), are drawn to her. When a dog threatens the children, Cassie tames it with a few choice words and rescues the children.
One of the people who is not charmed by Cassie is Martha Tinsdale (Catherine Disher) the mayor’s busybody wife. Mrs. Tinsdale leads a campaign against Cassie, trying to get her to leave town.
Rumors swirl about Cassie, with speculation swirling that she is a witch, albeit a good witch. She doles out wise advice when people tell her their problems, but the solutions are not really supernatural.
Young Lori tells Cassie that she is tormented by dreams of monsters. Cassie advises the girl to keep chanting, “I will not dream of bunnies.” Sure enough, the next morning, Lori reports that she dreamed of bunnies instead of monsters.
Brandon tells Cassie that he is being bothered by a bully named Derek. Cassie gives him an enchanted crystal, but Brandon must spend time with Derek and introduce him to his
police chief father. While befriending Derek, Brandon learns that Derek's father is abusive. When he introduces Derek to his father, a series of events is set into motion and Derek is removed from the dangerous situation at home.
When Nancy Perkins (Paula Boudreau) visits the Bell, Book and Candle, she reveals that her marriage is mission passion. Cassie suggests an aphrodisiac that she herself conjured up. Again, the results are immediate and life-altering: Nancy and her husband find a romantic spark that never existed. Ultimately she winds up pregnant, something they’d never been able to make happen.
On Halloween, Cassie hosts a party at Grey House. A few Middleton residents whom Cassie has helped and befriended attend, while a handful of trick-or-treaters come and go.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Tinsdale’s two sons are up to Halloween mischief. But Jake’s deputy, Joe, catches the boys red-handed while they’re vandalizing the Bell, Book and Candle shop.
Even though Mrs. Tinsdale has been nasty to her, Cassie declines to press charges against the boys. Mayor Tinsdale finally tells his shrewish wife to quit with her bullying behavior. And as everyone pitches in to help Cassie repair the damage to her shop, it’s clear that Cassie and Jake are going to experience “happily ever after,” whether she’s a witch or not.
“The Good Witch” also stars Catherine Disher (“The Path to 9/11”), Matthew Knight(“Candles on Bay Street”), Peter MacNeill (“Talk to Me,”), Hannah Endicott-Douglas (“Samantha: An American Girl”) and Paula Boudreau (“Runaway”).
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