Abracadabra! A puff of smoke? A top hat? No. Basic magical traits aren’t Now You See Me’s style. Although you may see a white rabbit miraculously disappear and a deck of cards shuffled with utmost enthusiasm, Now You See Me aligns itself with criminal trickery.
FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) and Interpol detective Alma Dray (Mélanie Laurent) track a team of illusionists known as “The Four Horsemen” – a group lead by Social Network’s Jesse Eisenberg. Brought together by an anonymous sponsor, “The Four Horsemen” pull off a series of heists – stealing, but publicly sharing, money from the corrupt – during their performances.
Now You See Me isn’t as mind-blowing as it wants to be, in fact, it’s rather smug. Twists and turns are thrown in wearingly and, although the magic tricks are carefully crafted, the script tries to praise its own merits by boastfully revealing the smarts of each heist that occurs.
Instead of completely focusing on four incredibly talented magicians, the film forges a relationship with the authorities. A persistent Mark Ruffalo is generally in the foreground but his repetitive failure becomes an annoyance and his dull relationship with Laurent never hits it stride, leaving “The Four Horsemen” shamefully under written.
Outside of the story, director Louis Leterrier doesn’t have the edge to construct a suspenseful set piece and his camera work, alongside some shoddy editing, comes across slightly messy.
And less said about the films conclusion the better.
Now You See Me isn’t as hypnotising as one hoped.
★★☆☆☆
