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Plot: Set in early 20th-century Vienna, a stage magician uses his magic to win back the great love of his life from a brutal enemy, her fiance, who is also the powerful crowned prince of Austria.
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Recent Reviews
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MCT:August 28, 2008
this was pretty neat.
i loved how it was set in austria
how can he do all those things?
i just didnt like jessica biel -
MCT:August 28, 2008Great film!I knew it was going to be,I had heard alot about it,I guess I was expecting there to be a little more magic in it.I think that's another thing is I kept trying to compare it to The Prestige and should not have been doing that.All in all though Edward Norton is awesome in this as well kudos to Jessica Biel and Paul Giamatti,which I will just add right here that I really didn't know what decision he would make since he seemed so farup the Prince's ass.He did the right thing =).Anyway see it if you haven't already,Oh and great twist ending.=)
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MCT:August 21, 2008
Superb story, superb acting and an awesome ironic twist at the end. Even David Bowie is back in the acting game! Great film.
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MCT:August 16, 2008This was crap. Unfairly compared to "The Prestige" they are two completely different films, which happen to focus on magicians. Also, they are completely different insofar as "The Illusionist" is garbage. Trite, unispired, boring. Ed Norton falls asleep halfway through the movie (and I LOVE Ed Norton), Jessica Biel may be the most over-rated actress around, and Paul Giamatti, as always, gives 110% and at least makes the movie watchable. Just barely. The script is awful, especially the part of the Crowned Prince, or whatever he was. The scenes between Biel and Norton are extremely forced, and there is more chemistry in a can of soda than between those two. Avoid this boring, overwrought movie at all costs.
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MCT:August 16, 2008This movie is amazing. I absolutley loved it. I never saw that ending coming and I love those movies that keeps you guessing until the very end. Plus I like "magic" stuff...x) I think Edward Norton did an amazing performance.
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MCT:August 15, 2008
My favorite movie! Kept me guessing till the very end! Then I could laugh and say, "Oh NOW I get it!
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MCT:August 15, 2008
Shares some similiarities with "The Prestige", altough I find this one to be slightly better. Edward Norton does an awesome job as always and it's also one of few films where Jessica Biel actually gives a good performance, believe it or not. All in all, one of the best movies of 2006.
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MCT:August 14, 2008I'm going to be controversial and criticise an oscar nominated production.
Ridiculous 'english' accents, zero chemistry between the leads, a story that you never actually care about.
There are many good actors in this - Ed Norton, Rufus Sewell, Paul Giamatti... and maybe if I'd seen this before The Prestige I'd have been less underwhelmed but Chris Nolan's creation was smarter and much more intriguing...and dare I say it, better cast. -
MCT:August 13, 2008
The Illusionist (2006)
I'm not normally into movies about magic (cough, "The Prestige"), but this movie put a spell on me. The beautifully dreamy imagery of this story is reminiscent of the old silent movies with their keyhole transitions and their flickering gas lights. The soundtrack too gives you that same feeling.
Edward Norton plays the great 19th century magician, Eisenheim, whose act intrigues the Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell) and his fiancé Sophie (Jessica Biel). Sophie is way beyond Eisenheim's social station, but they had been childhood sweethearts and the attraction is still there.
Police Inspector Uhi (Paul Giamatti) has been following Sophie and although he likes Eisenheim, and is curious about his magic tricks, he works for the prince and needs to put a stop to their philandering ways. Eisenheim is walking on dangerous ground here.
Rufus Sewell plays Leopold with great, old fashioned villainy. You just have to boo and hiss when he walks into view. He's so powerful and anyone who's read "Leopold's Ghost" knows what a bad ass Leopold was in real life. Even Mark Twain wrote about him. Edward Norton is fantastic. You can't take your eyes off of him, and what can I say about Jessica Biel except (heavy sigh) what a sensuous beauty.
This is a very good date movie. It might be a little slow for "The Presige" fans. ;-) -
MCT:August 13, 2008Many other reviews and comments about The illusionist have employed the term "old-fashioned" to describe it, and I can't help but to concur with the appropriateness of its usage. The movie is entertaining in the most elementary of ways -- it just wants to spin a good yarn, and, in the way it lushly presents its world of turn-of-the-century Vienna and bases its tale on character motives surrounding a romance and a mystery, watching it feels like you're listening to a skillful storyteller in an intimate setting. The visuals are all earth and sepia tones, a flashback is given the look of an old nickelodeon silent, and the score is another classically lulling work of arpeggio waves by Philip Glass. One might say it casts a spell, which is fitting for a movie about a magician (Edward Norton) with unparalleled skill whose story involves a love interest (Jessica Biel), a police inspector (Paul Giamatti), and a villain (Rufus Sewell) who all but twirls his moustache. In the end, you can forgive it if it feels a bit slight because it's a movie simply about the magic of presentation, and this carries through both in its execution and in its subject.
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MCT:August 8, 2008
Incerdible performance, The twist was impossible to figure out, unlike some movies, you already know the plan, but this one was spectacular.
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MCT:August 7, 2008
I loved this. The performances by the cast were understated but still captivating and Edward Norton always brings class to any film he's in. The Illusions worked brilliantly and kept me guessing, whilst the story was believable and satisfying at it's end. This is a magical movie!
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MCT:August 5, 2008
Just to clear the air, The Illusionist isn't The Prestige. Both are different animals that just happen to deal with magic. So before you dismiss one or the other, like many have, each film is different from it's third cousin twice removed.
The Illusionist opens up more like a Princess Bride, being the typical lower class boy and the upper crust girl fall in love but are ripped apart by their differences in social stature. Jump ahead to when they meet again. He is a popular Illusionist (Edward Norton). She is the fiance of the crown prince (Jessica Biel). You can tell where it's going from here.
Edward Norton portrays the Illusionist Eisenheim with great precision as Norton usually does in his roles (even in The Incredible Hulk). Norton is one of those guys that keeps flying under the radar but is going to explode sooner than later. Jessica Biel shows that she has what it takes to get out of the teeny bop bullshit and perform some real acting. And Paul Giamatti is great as he usually is, playing the Inspector that is in cahoots with the crown prince.
The Illusionist is an illusion with a great plot (even though they almost push past the levels of believability). Like The Prestige it's one of those films that will have you sitting there guessing how he did it just like a good magician's act. -
MCT:August 5, 2008Predictability. Is it a good thing? No. Is The Illusionist a good film? No.
The boring title sequence sets the tone for the rest of this overly serious film about an illusionist's love affair with a woman above his social position, which is unintentionally amusing when it isn?t tedious. There are no developed characters, and the 'old photo' style is distracting, while the music desperately tries to arouse interest in this cold, distant sleepwalk of a story. The worst part has to be the twist, which has been blatant throughout, to the point where I craved a double bluff, but was not rewarded and discovered that no, the film really does think we are that stupid. Also, the 'revelation' scene in which we learn what we knew was going on anyway, is both clumsily childish in its awfulness, and all assumption on the part of Uhl, the only character, so pointless anyway.
Tag Line: 'Nothing Is What It Seems'? Now that's another of those unintentionally funny bits. -
MCT:August 4, 2008A good magician film with a great cast but i felt it kind of dragged and that i didnt really care about any of the characters.
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MCT:August 2, 2008
Enjoyable if unspectacular tale of forbidden love, with strong performances from all, let down somewhat by a predictable plot and underwhelming twist.
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MCT:August 2, 2008
I love these movies, like the Prestige and the Illusionist. I sometimes get the two mixed up because I saw them in thetures the same day. They were both briliant and I love them both. I love the cast in this one especially. I really hope you see The Illusionist, and when you done (wait a few days, so you don't confuse them) rent The Prestige.
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MCT:August 1, 2008
This is the movie that brought me toward my all time favourite actor "Edward Norton" He is greeaat! in this movie!. definatly 5stars!.
Twist and turns like "ThePrestige" Thats what makes it so great! -
Tis is a great movie watch more than once to understand but don't get scard and pay close attention to all the hints and red herrings
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MCT:July 29, 2008
Well,I thought it would be better,i guessed the ending and the movie wasn't as half as interesting as The Prestige,but Edward Norton's and Paul Giamatti's performances where both great,and did I mention Jessica Biel's in the movie
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MCT:July 29, 2008
Gripping story with amazing casts. A story that will keep you wanting more, waiting eagerly to find out what happens at the end.
A masterpiece! -
MCT:July 28, 2008
"Everything you have seen here has been an illusion."
The Illusionist is an entrancing period movie, featuring subtle touches of incredulity, romance and mystery. With an ideal cast, wonderful production values and elegant cinematography, audiences will certainly find this an enthralling visual experience to behold. The competent production team have produced an admirably-constructed and visually beautiful movie. However, The Illusionist is undoubtedly not without flaws. While critics generally panned the movie and audiences tended to love it, I unfortunately must side with the critics for the most part. The film may contain an absorbing story and graceful visuals, but the film's entire duration appears far too sombre and serious. As a result, the production feels considerably disjointed. There are also far too many elements that demand an overwhelming suspension of disbelief in order to ignore. Consequently, the film possesses the capacity to keep an audience rapt like an old-fashioned card trick that we've previously witnessed several times.
Based on a short story by Pulitzer Prize winning author Steven Millhauser, the title of The Illusionist refers to the film's protagonist: a stage magician (or "illusionist" if preferred) known as Eisenheim (Norton). As a child (played by Johnson), Eisenheim formed a close bond with young Sophie von Teschen (Tomlinson). However, the two are unable to be together due to the social expectations of the period (i.e. the same form of forbidden love found in Titanic, The Notebook, etc). When Eisenheim reaches adulthood, he has grown to become an extremely popular illusionist whose skills instil enchantment in his audience. Now touring Vienna in the early 1900s, Eisenheim possesses the ability to conjure illusions that defy the bounds of the physical world. The word of Eisenheim's abilities reaches the ear of the arrogant and greedy Crown Prince Leopold (Sewell). He attends one of Eisenheim's shows, during which it is discovered that Leopold is set to marry Sophie von Teschen (now played by Biel) who has reached adulthood. Jealous of Eisenheim's abilities as well as sensing romance between Eisenheim and Sophie, Crown Prince Leopold aims to debunk the illusions and reveal Eisenheim as a fraud. Unable to complete this task, Leopold consults dogged Chief Inspector Uhl (Giamatti) to reveal the secrets surrounding the popular illusionist who has now amassed a phenomenal public following.
Movies featuring stage magic are always challenging, as the point of stage magic is to create entertaining and dazzling illusions before a live crowd. As The Illusionist is a film featuring CGI and state-of-the-art visual effects, there is already a problem. The 'magic' is lost because an audience watching a movie will not become compelled to wonder how a trick was done live...they will just dismiss it as heavy CGI. Hence none of these illusions are at all magical. Despite Ricky Jay's presence on the set as a magic consultant, the illusions performed by Eisenheim are frequently eerie and impossible beyond words. That is the point of course; however we lose interest in the character on a realistic human level. Eisenheim's magic is sometimes too overused and grows monotonous. Also, with no clear-cut explanation behind Eisenheim's skills (an explanation that isn't mythical, I mean) we again cannot see the character as a credible man. Even after saying that, there are a number of good quality magic tricks that elevate the entertainment value.
Interestingly, actor Edward Norton stepped away from the clichéd over-the-top magician embodiment. Norton is instead very detached from reality and appears extremely emotionally withdrawn. He succeeds in his objective of appearing emotionless, but he lacks any personality at all. As a consequence the film often appears very frigid and impersonal. The best performance present in the film is provided by Paul Giamatti as Chief Inspector Uhl. His portrayal is as a man whose confidence in his work (and the Crown Prince) is steadily decreasing. It appears that he is primarily responsible for the protection of the Crown Prince. This job also incorporates covering up his various lurid actions. Giamatti produces a multi-faceted and identifiable character in Uhl: a man who treads the thin line between endeavouring to serve the interests of Prince Leopold and himself, while also struggling to retain his veracity and feeling of justice. Uhl comes alive when trying to decipher Eisenheim's illusions, but he also seems recurrently and pleasantly perplexed by them at the same time. Jessica Biel doesn't seem like someone from the period. This isn't her fault, as the script didn't grant her much to work with.
Director Neil Burger shrewdly blends intrigue and romance with a nourishing dosage of misdirection. The peculiar characters mixed with largely unknown motives and enigmatic plot elements never seem to add up. Burger maintains a sturdy mood of utter solemnity throughout the film, which enhances the film's coldness. Burger also declines the opportunity to take any significant creative chances. He instead often relies on a succession of insipid cinematic devices such as the love triangle and the "twist" ending. The cinematography, on the other hand, is truly marvellous. The visuals are always amazing. Cinematographer Dick Pope presents some wonderful contributions. Each shot has the look of a vintage photograph: gold wash sometimes framed in brown edging. The art direction is stunning: the sets and costumes are all intricately created. The music as well is worth mentioning. It sets the mood and gives the impression of a fantasy.
Overall, The Illusionist is a moderately enjoyable period movie that's worth viewing for its enthralling visual flare. While some performances are questionable and there are gaping script errors, one will find this film to be adeptly-paced and terrific to watch. The suspension of disbelief required is sometimes far too demanding. I mean, all the characters reside in Vienna but never adopt any of the genuine accents. And the illusions are usually too unbelievable for a light slice of entertainment. The ending is also disappointing. It's an unpredictable twist, but in general it's too feel-good, cute and clichéd.
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Comments
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WrellikWposted 35 days ago -
OMG lol on me but... i just remembered today taht I saw this movie at the cinemas when it first came out. LOL but I remember that it was awesome and wont say what else cos i never know what ruins it for people. so yeah :) I liked it.
posted 121 days ago -
The twist at the end it's a bit predictable but the rest of the movie is really original and a true love story. If you haven't seen it yet, you really should rent it/ buy it/or something else, just see it!!!!
posted 211 days ago -
Excellent! The ending was unexpected to me... what I really thought was that the actress could never die that way without an espectacular reappearence.
Esta película es una de las mejores... la duquesa no podia morir de esa forma sin hacer una espectacular reaparicion como la vista en este drama. La actuación y la ambientación de todo el escenario fue único. Cinco estrellas bien ganadas.posted 308 days ago -
Really amazing what makes it so great is that you could never guess the ending. The "magic" aspect is also great
posted 376 days ago -
IT WAS THE SECOND BEST MOVIE I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY WHOLE LIFE!!!!I GAVE IT A 100, 5 STARS, TWO THUMBS UP AND A 10!!!! THIS MOVIE MAKES THE PRESTIGE LOOK LIKE A PILE OF COW DUNG (WHICH IT WAS ANYWAY) ANYWAY COMMENT ON MY PAGE PLEASE IM NEW!!!LOL
posted 396 days ago -
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This movie was spectacular and i would recommend that everyone see it espacially if you like magic..Jamie
posted 408 days ago -
Dude this movie was spectacular! I would definitely see this again. Love your flicks!
posted 423 days ago -
I thought this was an excellent movie! I borrowed it off my mums friend, who also said i should watch the prestige coz its better. I havent watched the prestige yet, but i thought the illisionist was so much better than i thought it was gunna be. I loved it. I didnt suspect that he'd set it all up til near the end. I loooooved it :)
posted 435 days ago
