In Review Now You See Me

What's more entertaining than an elborately planned out magic trick? An elaborately planned out magic trick that goes terribly wrong, of course. Sadly though, in the magic infused crime thriller'Now You See Me', all the magic tricks seem to go to plan. Or do they? We don't know, it's too damn entertainingly confusing to be honest.

In a swirling, twisting plot that centers around a group of magicians named 'The Four Horsemen' who were bought together by a mystery man, you will inevitably find yourself on a roller coaster ride that impresses for the first half hour, then plummets into a dip of abracadabra fueled confusion, and emerges at the end leaving you to the realisation that the plot is way too eccentric to ever be remotely possible.

BUT WHAT A RIDE

Who cares if half the stuff that goes on is probably physically impossible, it's still damn cool- and a gives a pretty heavily deserved breath of fresh air to a genre that has recently suffered some serious woes- a la Danny Boyles recent catastrophe 'Trance'.

So- on with the plot. Put nice and shortly, a group of talented magicians are bought together to help bring the world to rights and redistribute some wealth to the masses, through their live shows. Que a few cheeky sub plots involving Michael Cane's wrong doings as a millionaire, and Morgan Freeman's attempt to uncover magicians tricks- as well as the obligatory police chase that comes after robbing a bank, and you get a film that will thrill and entertain for short periods, but ultimately leave you walking out with that vacant 'MEH' expression.

So did director Louis Leterrier pull the rabbit out the hat with this crime caper? It's hard to tell. To some, this will be a film that lives long in the memory. To others, it'll just be an overcooked disappointment.

There's no denying the entertainment value that the elaborate plot brings, or the quality of the CGI effects and sweeping camera shots, but there can be some serious doubts about the cast and characters.

The main characters are seriously unlikable- big headed and aloof, part of you will feel like you want them to get caught, just so you can watch them fail.

Then there's the bobby that's chasing them around the country. Played by Mike Ruffalo, he's always 'two steps behind', and that is incredibly annoying and ever so tedious. Teamed up with a French Interpol agent (yep, you guessed it, they hook up), he becomes the epitome of a burnt out member of the American law enforcement, and basically remains a 2D character throughout the whole debacle, despite being so heavily involved.

Luckily for the likes of Jesse Eisenburg and Isla Fisher though, Michael Cane and Morgan Freeman do their standard sterling job of supporting a lackluster cast, and just about save the film from slipping into bargain basement mediocrity.

If you're after a mindless thrills and spills watch, this probably isn't for you. If you fancy something that's going to leave you thinking all the way home, then get yourself a ticket.

Oh, and keep an eye out for the big twist at the end. It's more impressive than when magicians saw their assistants in half.

Ryan J Gray