Now You See Me - Movie Review

Rating: 3 out of 5

The idea of magicians conducting a series of heists is a great one, but this under-developed film never quite seizes the opportunity. Even its terrific A-list cast can't make much of the lame plot. And director Leterrier is so enamoured with magic that he packs the film with whizzy digital trickery. Which completely misses the point.

At the centre are four illusionists: card trickster Daniel (Eisenberg), hypnotist Merrit (Harrelson), escapologist Henley (Fisher) and street magician Jack (Franco). They're summoned by a mysterious figure to team up for a series of elaborate performances funded by a wealthy benefactor (Caine). First up is a Las Vegas show that involves stealing millions of euros from a Paris bank and raining them down on the audience. This attracts the attention of FBI Agent Rhodes (Ruffalo) and Interpol's Dray (Laurent), who follow them to their next shows in New Orleans and New York. As does a notorious debunker (Freeman) determined to expose their secrets.

The film never quite gets the balance right, as we're not sure if we should root for these flashy young magicians or the people they're leading on a wild goose chase. But there's plenty of eye candy to keep us happy, as each whizzy stunt goes over-the-top to make us wonder what's really happening here. Everything this quartet does has an anarchist slant, stealing from the wealthy to help the needy, which adds a tinge of topicality. Although the gratuitous action scenes and ludicrous effects leave the film about as realistic as a Road Runner cartoon.

Thankfully the cast is strong enough to hold our interest. Ruffalo, Laurent, Caine and Freeman are terrific as the befuddled marks, while Harrelson and Franco get the sparkiest magical roles. All of these actors are a lot of fun to watch, so it's a shame that the film abandons its early promise as a free-wheeling adventure to become a too-serious thriller that simply doesn't hold water. And as the plot strains to sort out its tangled threads, it becomes laughably corny.

Facts and Figures

Year: 2013

Genre: Thriller

Run time: 115 mins

In Theaters: Friday 31st May 2013

Box Office USA: $117.7M

Box Office Worldwide: $117.7M

Budget: $75M

Distributed by: Lionsgate Films

Production compaines: Summit Entertainment, K/O Paper Products, SOIXAN7E QUIN5E, See Me Louisiana

Reviews

Contactmusic.com: 3 / 5

Rotten Tomatoes: 50%
Fresh: 74 Rotten: 75

IMDB: 7.3 / 10

Cast & Crew

Director: Louis Leterrier

Producer: Bobby Cohen, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci

Screenwriter: Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin, Edward Ricourt

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg as J. Daniel Atlas, Mark Ruffalo as Dylan Rhodes, Woody Harrelson as Merritt McKinney, Isla Fisher as Henley Reeves, Dave Franco as Jack Wilder, Mélanie Laurent as Alma Dray, Morgan Freeman as Thaddeus Bradley, Michael Caine as Arthur Tressler, Michael Kelly as Agent Fuller, Common as Evans, David Warshofsky as Cowan, José Garcia as Etienne Forcier, Jessica Lindsey as Hermia, Caitriona Balfe as Jasmine Trassler, Stephanie Honoré as Atlas Groupie, Elias Koteas as Lionel Shrike

Also starring: Melanie Laurent, Bobby Cohen, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin