OK, really, what is up with magician these days? A magician was transported to Oz, Steve Carell played one in a “comedy”, Gob returned for more development just last week; in addition to superheroes and R-rated comedies, Hollywood seems to be really jumping on this random magician bandwagon. “Now You See Me” takes a more action and thriller oriented approach to this occupation, allowing a roster of A-list talent to dazzle audiences with riveting illusions.
Dylan (Mark Ruffalo) is hot on the trail of a group of musicians known as The Four Horseman, consisting of Daniel (Jesse Eisenberg), Merritt (Woody Harrelson), Henley (Isla Fisher) and Jack (Dave Franco). These four have begun to rob banks using their magic skills, whilst giving all their stolen loot to their captivated audience. Now, Dylan will team up with a foreign agent named Alma (Melanie Laurent) to take down the four, before the group performs their final, most stupefying trick yet.
“Now You See Me” is a refreshingly low-key, summer flick with it’s own little magic act of it’s own: it become a convincing crime film right before our very eyes. Granted,the action scenes can feel repetitive, especially the use of the dreaded shaky cam. Also, post-”Fast & Furious 6”, subpar car chases like the ones seen here just don’t cut it anymore.
But whenever the film lets it’s amazing actors and unexpectedly well written plot turns take over, it becomes nothing short of wonderful.
I did feel that Dylan as a protagonist was a bit bland, although the film does have a reason for keeping his personality minimal and motivations mysterious, so I suppose it’s forgivable. The Four Horsemen on the other hand, are a fun bunch, delivering both humor and superb chemistry in spades. It’s a shame we don’t see much of them together off-stage through the film, as scenes where they carry on hilarious conversations are some of the film’s best moments.
Louis Leterrier (director of “The Incredible Hulk” and “Clash of The Titans”) does some fine directing here, especially staging of scenes involving The Four Horsemen’s spectacular magic show tricks, which riveted even this slightly cynical critic. He also makes a nice habit of holding a shot a bit longer than usual in order for the viewer to fully take in the spectacle, a refreshing change of pace from most summer flicks that’ll rush us through all the imagery solely to get to the next action sequence. One nitpick; a big emotional moment at the end, involving a 360 degree shot of the protagonist standing in New York City felt ruined for me since it reminded me too much of the moment in “Enchanted” when Giselle first arrives in the same city.
I adored the script though; written by Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin and Edward Ricourt. The film is overflowing with not just laughs and action scenes (for the record, it does much better in the chuckles department than the adrenaline one) but also plot turns that make the film itself one giant magic trick. Just when you think you’ve got it all worked out, a new plot point pops up that makes you reconsider all that’s come before; it’s a genuine surprise to find a well written script in what could’ve been just a disposable summer thriller.
It doesn’t have any real lasting qualities to it, but “Now You See Me” is a thrilling and well written summer diversion nonetheless. Far from redefining the genre, it uses a great script and cast to elevate the film to unexpected heights. There will be, and already are better films than this, but “Now You See Me” works just fine as a fun slice of summer entertainment.
