Practical Magic: 10 Sisterhood Quotes

The movie Practical Magic is about many things: romance, family, betrayal, and, of course, magic! But of the several themes packed into this classic, the one that stands out the most is that of the sisterhood shared by the two lead characters Sally and Gillian, played by Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman.

Sally and Gillian are as different as could be, and have many conflicts between them–but what sisters don’t? It’s the very complicated quality of their relationship that speaks to viewers and makes the dialogue between them such a pleasure to look back on.

10 Go Sal!

Being a witch, Sally isn’t very popular amongst the other parents in town. She does her best to fit in, but not much helps her situation, and this is shown in the fact that she is never picked to be put on the emergency call tree at the parent school meetings.

When Gillian gets wind of this, she shows up to the meeting and uses magic to get Sally on the list–prompting her to cheer for Sally just to let the women, and Sally, know that someone has Sally’s back.

9 I Miss Her

Sally isn’t used to her sister not being around. Gillian was always destine to go off on her own, being the one who finds their small town tiresome and boring, while Sally only yearns for normalcy and to settle down in that very small town.

While she know Gillian had to go, her being gone leaves Sally feeling aimless and lonely, emphazing how the sister duo always relied on each other growing up.

8 Thanks For Being My Sister

Gillian and Sally are reunited after years, but not under ideal circumstances.

While the sisters stand stamping their feet over the muddy grave of Jimmy, who they have just buried, Gillian looks to Sally with genuine appreciation and thanks her for being there for her.

7 You Have The Worst Taste In Men

All the darkness of the film does not go by without some humor snuck in.

Sally says this line while she and Gillian drag the body of Jimmy Angelov across their yard, in an effort to bring him into the house and spell him back to life after Sally gave him an accidental over-dose of a drug that would stop him from being an abusive boyfriend to Gillian.

6 Do You Forgive Our Mother? ‘Sometimes’

Gillian and Sally’s mother is stated to have “died of a broken heart”, according to their Ants, but when Gillian asks Sally if she forgives their mother, the implication is that their mother took her own life–likely as a result of the grief she felt over losing her husband to the curse.

This quote shows the shared pain the sisters have.

5 You’ll Never Forgive Yourself Unless You Get Up, And You Get Dressed, And You Brush Your Goddamn Teeth Because Your Breath Stinks

Sally and Gillian aren’t in each other’s adult lives very much–Gillian worries that Sally’s children won’t like her, revealing that she must have been gone for many years as they are both around ten years old at least.

But when things are serious, the sisters are there for each other to give both love and necessary tough love, like when Sally’s husband dies and she won’t get out of bed.

4 Don’t You Walk Away From Me

Gillian and Sally have issues that they clearly havn’t settled with each other when Gillian comes back to live in the house.

Gillian has a reputation for being the one who walks away from situations, but when she tries to do this after arguing with Sally about Officer Hallet, Sally becoming angry at the mess Gillian continually makes, Sally isn’t having it.

3 You. Owe Me. Big Time.

Sally once again instill the sisterly humor into a tense moment the two women share.

Most people who have sisters can relate to the push and pull of such relationships, and how one minute they can be at each other’s necks and the next helping them, well, in this case, bury an ex-lover in their front garden, because that’s how much they love them.

2 It’s Gonna Be You And Me, Living In A Big House. These Two Old Biddies With All These Cats. I Bet We Even Die The Same Day.

Before Gillian leaves the house of the Ants, leaving Sally behind with them, she promises Sally that she will come back one day, and that they will live out the rest of their lives together.

This a particularly poignant quote in the movie because it places the relationship of the sisters above all others, including the romantic ones which often steal the focus.

1 My Blood, Your Blood, Our Blood

This quote occurs at the end of the movie when Gillian is stuck with a piece of Jimmy inside of her, influencing her soul and causing her to lose who she is.

Sally gets her back by cutting open their hands, as they did in the begining of the movie, and putting their palms together to reunite their blood and bringing Gillian back to who she is; a banishing of the man who ruled her, and allowing her bond to her sister to instead anchor who she is.