Hello my little darling readers. If you thought that some terrifying movie called Evil Dead really got the best of me and that I had started watching movies unable to fight the flashback horror of creepy armless girls and weird blood-rain, you were horribly mistaken. I have simply been on hiatus. However, I am back to write you the very best and hopefully entertaining of reviews, although I probably won't be up to the same velocity as I was in my prime (what was that, like, four a month or something?), I will try my best to write one a month. It could be more than that but, funnily enough, I finally got a job that takes up the majority of my time. Take that, Recession!
ANYWAY! The reason that you all came here: to read about Now You See Me. Like you, probably, I saw this trailer on TV and I thought "Wow! This looks like Ocean's Eleven and Burt Wonderstone [did anyone else see that? no?] had an attractive baby!" There was no question that I had to see this movie right away.
So, this movie starts out by highlighting the talents of four magicians. Yup, magicians. But these aren't the people that showed up at your grade-school birthday party.
These guys are legit. A mentalist, a pick-pocket, and two ex-partner illusionists who band together to create the biggest magic tricks of all time. And when they, out of nowhere, start this huge show on the Vegas stage, things get wild. Robbing a bank and humiliating an insurance mogul, among other things, they get in trouble with the FBI, who then are after them for the duration of the movie. Hunting them at each show, they only seem to be met with failure at the precautions that these magic performers have in place. With these guys, things are never as they appear, and anything that seems to happen out of nowhere only adds to the intrigue of what their ultimate motive actually is.
What makes this movie so cool is that it's sort of like the nerds are finally coming out on top. Like who has ever known a magician at all, let alone one that is cool? But this movie points out that in order to be a magician, one has to be incredibly clever and forward-thinking. It's not about mirrors and smoke, but about careful planning and ultimate payoff.
It also conveys an incredibly satisfying feeling that justice is finally being served to the everyman. While corporate banks, insurance CEOs, and even the police have impressive power in our country, they are taken down by carefully planned illusions and tricks to benefit middle class citizens. Not your average illusions and tricks either. (Unfortunately, the preview gives away most of the cool ones, but it doesn't make their effects any less dazzling.) It was even cooler to witness a magic show where the audience in the movie theatre were freaking out just as much as the audience on screen. SO many twists and turns in this flick will make it impossible for you to predict the crazy plot-twist ending.
This film ended up being like a classic action movie with a twist. I've gotten tired of seeing all these buff dudes trying to save The White House, FBI agents going after serial killers, and super hero flicks. Yes, I'm sure they're all very lovely, nothing is wrong with any of those genres, but I feel like Hollywood has gotten so caught up in formulas for hits that they seldom reach for anything just plain interesting anymore. This movie really delivers something a little more like a dependable action movie from the 90's. It has the flavor of an espionage film without all the red tape, and the ethical backbone of a moody drama without all the boring long takes and sad music. Actually, come to think of it, you know what made this movie so great?
It entertained.
The audience was laughing and sympathizing and reacting to all of the tricks on screen, they appreciated the dialogue, and they freaked out with every plot twist. A full audience nonetheless and that, these days, is rare.
All in all, despite being a small release (the theater I went to only had one theater showing Now You See Me, while The Hangover 3 had an astounding three theaters all its own), this is definitely a flick that I would recommend seeing. Good, old-fashioned fun and great performances by Jesse Eisenburg, Isla Fisher, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo, Dave Franco, and Melanie Laurent. Go see it, it's good.
8 outa 10 stars.
According to Google, this is what a recession looks like...
ANYWAY! The reason that you all came here: to read about Now You See Me. Like you, probably, I saw this trailer on TV and I thought "Wow! This looks like Ocean's Eleven and Burt Wonderstone [did anyone else see that? no?] had an attractive baby!" There was no question that I had to see this movie right away.
So, this movie starts out by highlighting the talents of four magicians. Yup, magicians. But these aren't the people that showed up at your grade-school birthday party.
Wait..was that ever actually a thing?
These guys are legit. A mentalist, a pick-pocket, and two ex-partner illusionists who band together to create the biggest magic tricks of all time. And when they, out of nowhere, start this huge show on the Vegas stage, things get wild. Robbing a bank and humiliating an insurance mogul, among other things, they get in trouble with the FBI, who then are after them for the duration of the movie. Hunting them at each show, they only seem to be met with failure at the precautions that these magic performers have in place. With these guys, things are never as they appear, and anything that seems to happen out of nowhere only adds to the intrigue of what their ultimate motive actually is.
Why you do dese crazy tricks, magic people?
What makes this movie so cool is that it's sort of like the nerds are finally coming out on top. Like who has ever known a magician at all, let alone one that is cool? But this movie points out that in order to be a magician, one has to be incredibly clever and forward-thinking. It's not about mirrors and smoke, but about careful planning and ultimate payoff.
And bubbles. It's also about bubbles.
It also conveys an incredibly satisfying feeling that justice is finally being served to the everyman. While corporate banks, insurance CEOs, and even the police have impressive power in our country, they are taken down by carefully planned illusions and tricks to benefit middle class citizens. Not your average illusions and tricks either. (Unfortunately, the preview gives away most of the cool ones, but it doesn't make their effects any less dazzling.) It was even cooler to witness a magic show where the audience in the movie theatre were freaking out just as much as the audience on screen. SO many twists and turns in this flick will make it impossible for you to predict the crazy plot-twist ending.
Spoiler alert: the rabbit is behind the mirror in the box.
This film ended up being like a classic action movie with a twist. I've gotten tired of seeing all these buff dudes trying to save The White House, FBI agents going after serial killers, and super hero flicks. Yes, I'm sure they're all very lovely, nothing is wrong with any of those genres, but I feel like Hollywood has gotten so caught up in formulas for hits that they seldom reach for anything just plain interesting anymore. This movie really delivers something a little more like a dependable action movie from the 90's. It has the flavor of an espionage film without all the red tape, and the ethical backbone of a moody drama without all the boring long takes and sad music. Actually, come to think of it, you know what made this movie so great?
It entertained.
The audience was laughing and sympathizing and reacting to all of the tricks on screen, they appreciated the dialogue, and they freaked out with every plot twist. A full audience nonetheless and that, these days, is rare.
Looked just like this. Mostly.
All in all, despite being a small release (the theater I went to only had one theater showing Now You See Me, while The Hangover 3 had an astounding three theaters all its own), this is definitely a flick that I would recommend seeing. Good, old-fashioned fun and great performances by Jesse Eisenburg, Isla Fisher, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo, Dave Franco, and Melanie Laurent. Go see it, it's good.
8 outa 10 stars.
I can't wait to see this! Looks good with a decent cast.
ReplyDeleteLove your blog btw :)
http://flicksandgigs.blogspot.co.uk/
it was really good! and thanks :)
ReplyDelete