Ethan Wate (Alden Ehrenreich) hates his boring, far behind the times town of Gatlin. But one day he meets Lena Duchannes (Alice Englert), the literal girl of his dreams. The God-fearing townsfolk don't like her, and Ethan later finds out why.
Lena is a witch, or Caster as they call themselves. And on her sixteenth birthday, the forces of the moon, or something, will make her a good witch or a bad witch. All depends on her inner nature.
The wicked Sarafine (Emma Thompson) and Lena's also-evil cousin Ridley (Emmy Rossum) want her to join them. Ethan wants to be with Lena. Lena's uncle Macon (Jeremy Irons) wants her to do with none of them. And Lena just wants to choose what she wants to be. Simple as that.
All of this is more fun than it sounds.
The Screenplay, by director Richard LaGravenese, has a good sense of humor. There's plenty of hilarious one-liners and many fun performances by the supporting cast. Its young leads were great; even more so because their romance didn't indulge in excessive melodrama. There were some later plot elements that were odd, but they didn't detract from how good this was.
There's also some amazing visuals for those that want them. In particular, the dazzling interior of Lena's house was enough to actually evoke "wows" from the audience around me. Its special effects, including a dinner scene that goes awry, were also great.
Those looking for a new supernatural romance won't be disappointed. On page, this story goes on for three more novels. On-screen, you'll be left with anticipation where this story will go next.
