About The Movie:
Four talented magicians mesmerize an
international audience with a series of bold and original heists, all the while
pursuing a hidden agenda that has the FBI and Interpol scrambling to anticipate
their next move in Now You See Me, a visually spectacular blend of astonishing
illusions and exhilarating action from director Louis Leterrier (Clash of the
Titans).
The Four Horsemen, a magic
super-group led by the charismatic J.Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), perform a
pair of high-tech, high-profile magic shows, first amazing audiences by
remotely robbing a Paris bank while in Las Vegas, and then exposing a
white-collar criminal and funneling his millions into the audience members'
bank accounts, baffling the authorities with their intricately planned capers.
FBI Special Agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark
Ruffalo) is determined to make the magicians pay for their crimes—and to stop
them before they pull off what promises to be an even more audacious heist. But
he's forced to partner with Alma (Mélanie Laurent), an Interpol detective about
whom he is instantly suspicious. Out of desperation, he turns to Thaddeus
Bradley (Morgan Freeman), a famed magic debunker, who claims the Paris bank
trick was actually a meticulously planned illusion. Dylan and Alma begin to
wonder if the Horsemen have an outside point person. If so, finding him (or
her) would be the key to ending the magicians' crime spree. But who could it
be? Or could it really be... magic?
As pressure mounts and the world
awaits the Horsemen's spectacular final trick, Dylan and Alma race to stay one
step ahead of the magicians. But it soon becomes clear that outmaneuvering
these masters of illusion is beyond the skills of any one man—or woman.
What Is Good/Bad About The Movie:
Now You See Me weaves through the
mysterious darkness with momentum and humor, but when the lights are suddenly
flicked on, it doesn’t offer that perfect puzzle reveal we all yearn for. Yes,
the plot points add up to the conclusion, but with only a few minor tweaks the
final act could have easily gone in a handful of other different directions. Though
the weakness of this isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker, every magician knows,
the anticipation and build-up are far more riveting than learning how it was
done anyway.
From an entertainment standpoint, the
action is clearly driven by Eisenberg’s Atlas and Harrelson’s Osbourne. Both
cocksure and hilariously antagonistic in their own ways, they’re clearly the
two standout characters, and as such, the film occasionally loses track of its
other two Horsemen. In fact, during one early interrogation sequence featuring
the four principals in different rooms, Franco and Fisher are barely featured
at all. Their characters are more often than not afterthoughts rather than
mediums for entertainment, which makes them feel more like plot necessities rather
than engaging human beings.
I must say that this movie never
stops moving (the camerawork, dialogue, and plot twists keep rushing at you),
and it's exceedingly clever. Michael Cane as the rich benefactor and Morgan
Freeman as an anti-showman devoted to revealing the magicians' secrets, look
like they're having so much fun that you can forgive whatever you find wrong
with this film.
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