Now You See Me (SPOILER-Y)

Saw the posters for Now You See Me around town for weeks before I knew anything else about it and when various cast members went on the American late night talk show circuit to plug it. I figured, eh, why not. 

Produced by the some of the people who also has producing credits on Hawaii Five-0, it's a heist movie with a magical flair. It's been compared ad nauseum (by now) to The Prestige (since it was also about magicians and Sir Michael Caine was also in it) and the Oceans movies. I'll leave it at that.

It's 4 street magicians who get recruited by an anon benefactor to become The Four Horsemen, a successful magic uber group. Fast forward one year later, they seemingly robbed a bank in Paris during their act in Las Vegas. On their tail is Mark Ruffalo's (very grizzly looking) FBI agent Dylan Rhodes and Morgan Freeman's ex-magician-turned-magic-debunker, Thaddeus Bradley; one to catch them, the other to debunk them for profit.

I don't know if I missed it, or if it's due to shitty editing, but how did they get Sir Michael Caine's character to be their sponsor again?

• Jesse Eisenberg is basically doing his Mark Zuckerburg character from The Social Network, but with facial hair.
• Man, that is a REALLY OLD PICTURE of Woody Harrelson. 
• Of course they got a rapper (Common) to play an FBI bigwig.
• It got the equivalent of a 13-rating in Malaysia, which just means that certain words are left in that you don't want young children to pick up.
• I think I might be the only one who noticed the signature red Louboutin soles on Isla Fisher at one point in the movie.
• Morgan Freeman's character serves as a narration device to explain to Mark Ruffalo, the French Interpol lady (and the audience) how the tricks were done.
• I think they got Dave Franco in this movie because James is not the freshest looking Franco these days. Dave Franco throwing fireballs was pretty cool.
• Of all the late night talk show hosts, I'm glad they picked Conan O' Brien. 

I read that it was structured that way in case they make enough money to justify making sequels. I wouldn't mind that too much, if not to see how ridiculously pun-ny those titles would get, which I'm not gonna get into. 

 

I went in already aware of the big reveal (and there is always a reveal), but I still think it's pretty entertaining. Like Jesse Eisenberg says in the beginning, "The closer you look, the less you see". Suspend your disbelief a little and you'll like it.

(EW's spoiler piece on this movie)

I did wonder how Mark Ruffalo's character could've funded The Horsemen's long con/recruitment audition, not just on a gahmen servant's salary, but if he was financially poor in general. Maybe being in The Eye has its perks.