The Good Witch's Wonder is a 2014 American television film that aired on the Hallmark Channel on October 25, 2014. It is the seventh and final installment in the series of The Good Witch television movies. It inspired and sets up the Good Witch television series.
Synopsis[]
The seventh film installment opens with Cassie Nightingale (Catherine Bell) anticipating big changes as she hands over the town's mayoral reins to her friend Martha Tinsdale (Catherine Disher) and prepares for her stepson's wedding to his fiancée, Tara (Ashley Leggat). But when the wedding date gets moved up, it causes tension that threatens Tara and Brandon's (Matthew Knight) happily-ever-after. Meanwhile, Cassie befriends the town's newcomer, Audrey (Rachel Wilson), and hires her to help in Cassie's store until Audrey's mysterious past comes back to haunt her and brings trouble for the town and Martha's first project as mayor. Despite her seemingly magical knack for solving problems for those around her, Cassie wonders if this recent turn of events is something she -- or anyone -- can actually fix.
Plot[]
Under the cover of darkness, a woman rifles through file drawers and dresser drawers in an unlit home, strategically selecting the items she takes. As she nervously and silently goes about her task, she hears an approaching car and quickly leaves. A man returns home and discovers the open drawers and disarray, but the woman has disappeared into the woods and has safely escaped into the night.
Meanwhile back in Middleton, Martha rehearses for her inauguration as the new mayor when Cassie suddenly and silently pops in, as she tends to do. She tells Martha that she will be an excellent mayor and vows to help her any way she can. But Madame Mayor is soon faced with her first problem – her pet-project, the Middleton Botanical Gardens she designed, is grossly over-budget. Cassie helps her come to the idea of scaling back “a tad” but Martha is determined to raise the money at next week’s fundraiser. Then Cassie presents her friend with a Kachina doll to inspire her to achieve great leadership, a gift that leaves Martha underwhelmed.
Cassie’s stepdaughter Lori, a sophomore in college, is congratulated by her TA Jim for great work on her first article for the school paper, a story on online dating disasters. Lori thanks him but laments the nightmare that has been her online dating experience. She needs a date for her brother Brandon’s upcoming wedding but only has four months left and fears time is running out.
Back at her store Bell, Book & Candle, Cassie is thrilled to hear from her stepson Brandon who tells her that he and his fiancé Tara are coming into town that evening. She can’t wait to see them and tells Brandon she has already made a double batch of his favorite dish in the slow cooker. Cassie then turns her attention to Audrey, a customer who’s wandered into her store and is new in town. Cassie suspects she’s hiding something about her past, but the two instantly bond so Cassie hires Audrey as her new store associate on the spot.
At home, Cassie tends to dinner as Jake returns from work. Soon, Tara’s Aunt Beverly and the happy couple arrive. Brandon has good news to share -- the record label wants him to be their rep for the festival tour! But their family’s excitement quickly turns to dismay when they announce the wedding has to be postponed because Brandon will be on the road for six straight months. Later, they decide to get married before Brandon goes on tour, in just eight days! Instead of a grand affair, the couple agrees to a small, casual celebration. There’s a lot of work to do in a short time as Cassie is also organizing Martha’s silent auction fundraiser the day before the wedding. Audrey offers to pitch in and help with the auction.
Lori returns from college and vents to Cassie about her love life but is hoping it turns around. She received a great response to her first article and is doing a follow-up by going on blind dates with some of the guys who commented on her story and wanted to date her. Cassie assures her that the right person will come along when she least expects it. She gives Lori a camera obscura previously owned by a Parisian photographer who took pictures of couples in love. Cassie instructs her to simply wind it three times and find her focus.
As the wedding planning progresses, Aunt Beverly is concerned that Tara is making too many compromises and giving up the chance to have the wedding she’s always wanted. She tells her niece it needs to be a partnership between her and Brandon and that she should insist on the wedding she envisions.
Martha’s efforts to solicit donations from local businessmen have fallen short. She tells Cassie and Audrey the auction items need to be collected and displayed so people will get excited and loosen their purse strings. Audrey promises to take care of it. Later, Grant Dressel, a marketer, stops by Martha’s office and offers to create an online catalog of the auction items to generate interest. Audrey walks in at the end of their meeting and is taken aback when she sees him. Martha introduces them and tells Audrey she wants her to work with Grant on the catalog. Audrey leaves and then quickly makes travel reservations using Cassie’s name.
After a rushed morning of wedding errands, Tara tells Brandon she’d like to add some traditional touches to their big day. The conversation goes poorly and Tara decides that she and Brandon don’t have as much in common as she originally thought.
When Cassie arrives at her store she finds it locked up, with Audrey nowhere in sight. She goes inside and discovers the pocket watch that belonged to her great grandfather and was intended as a gift for Brandon on his wedding day, is missing. Concerned about Audrey, she goes to the police station to enlist Jake’s help. When Martha arrives, Cassie tells her that Audrey’s missing. Martha informs them that all the auction items are also missing and Audrey had the only key to the display case.
Things continue to unravel when Brandon announces to Jake and Cassie that he and Tara have broken up and called off the wedding. Cassie is still concerned about her new friend who has yet to be found. An APB has been put out on her and every pawnshop in a 150 mile radius has her photo. Martha is convinced her fundraiser is doomed, which means her first initiative as mayor is headed for disaster. Cassie is convinced there’s more to Audrey’s story, but a pawn shop surveillance video they obtained shows Audrey in the act of pawning the auction items.
Brandon is upset about the break up but tells Cassie he still loves Tara. His stepmom offers sage advice about love and marriage and bolsters him to try to repair his relationship.
Audrey is still missing and evidence Jake is gathering, paints a very grim picture. She’s still on the run and at another pawnshop. This time, it’s Cassie’s pocket watch she has to offer. Grant is there, forcing her to go inside with the watch, just as he forced her to steal the auction items. Audrey can’t bring herself to hurt Cassie this way but Grant threatens her; he reminds her that she is his wife and he’ll never let her go. Defeated, Audrey agrees to go inside. Grant looks in the window a few seconds later but sees no sign of her. He rushes in and finds her darting out the back of the store and gives chase.
Audrey returns to Cassie’s store, apologizes for what she’s done and returns the pocket watch. Cassie thanks her friend for taking care of it and is glad she’s safe. They go to the police station where Audrey confesses and is placed in custody. But Cassie is still convinced there’s more to her story and eventually gets Audrey to reveal her past with Grant. Cassie tries to persuade Audrey to tell everything to Jake but she said the police have never helped and Grant always finds her anyway, no matter how far she runs.
Martha catches up with Grant and apologizes for canceling the online catalog but he says there was no harm done. Martha continues and laments that they had the money they needed all along and didn’t realize it. Intrigued, Grant asks her how. Martha explains that their museum curator told her the Kachina doll Cassie donated was rare and could be worth as much as $50,000.
Brandon finds Tara in the park where he proposed. The couple talks things out and Brandon tells her the most important thing to him is for the two of them to be together. He’s going to tell the music company that he doesn’t want the job – what he wants is a life with Tara. He proposes again, slips the engagement ring back on her finger and the wedding is back on!
Lori’s dates haven’t gone well, no thanks to her editor Jim, who has also given her mixed signals. She’s frustrated and can’t finish her article, but when she picks up the pictures developed from the camera obscura Cassie gave her to take on her dates, she has an epiphany and discovers the right person was right in front of her all along – Jim. After discovering he quit his job at the paper she gets in touch with him. He confesses he quit so he could date her. Lori tells Jim she doesn’t want to date him, she wants him to be her boyfriend.
Grant meets with the museum curator and brings the Kachina doll. The curator examines it and confirms that it’s authentic and in excellent condition. When Grant asks how much it’s worth, Jake appears and tells him “fifteen to twenty years.” He promptly cuffs him and takes Grant into custody.
Brandon and Tara’s wedding is the following day in the park, which has been transformed into a miniature version of Martha’s original vision for the space. The mayor presides over the ceremony and there isn’t a dry eye in the house when vows are exchanged. During the reception, Martha tells Cassie that the wedding has been a great showcase for her Middleton Botanical Gardens and is sure it will inspire generous donations for the project. Audrey approaches and shares that she’s going to pursue her dream of working with animals and is enrolling in veterinary school. Cassie is thrilled to learn her new friend won’t have to leave town to do so. When a slow song is finally played, Jake and Cassie finally get to spend some time in each other’s arms as they take their turn on the dance floor.
Cast[]
- Catherine Bell as Cassandra Nightingale
- Chris Potter as Chief of Police Jake Russell
- Catherine Disher as Martha Tinsdale
- Hannah Endicott-Douglas as Lori Russell
- Matthew Knight as Brandon Russell
- Rachel Wilson as Audrey
- Peter MacNeill as George O'Hanrahan
- Ashley Leggat as Tara Russell
- Noah Cappe as Deputy Derek Sanders
- Lily-Fay Mowbray as Grace Russell
Notes and Trivia[]
- The Good Witch's Wonder takes place in 2016. Its predecessor, The Good Witch's Destiny, took place in 2014. Brandon and Tara planned to marry two years after that, meaning the movie takes place approximately in 2016.
Gallery[]
Posters[]
Movie Stills[]
