"I did *not* see that coming."
A mysterious stranger recruits four street magicians: cocky card shark J. Daniel
Atlas (Eisenberg), mentalist Merritt McKinney (Harrelson)
who also specializes in group hypnosis, Jack Wilder (Franco) a pick
pocket and talented sleight-of-hand magician, and Henley Reeves (Fisher) a
former magician’s assistant turned escape artist. Each receives a Tarot card with a date and location.
One year later, they are a combined act called "The Four Horsemen" and are a headlining act in Las Vegas. They are backed by wealthy insurance mogul Arthur Tressler (Caine). The grand finale of their act involves robbing a bank, without leaving the theater, and giving the money to the audience. This stunt attracts the attention of the FBI and the following day they are brought in for questioning. Agent Dylan Rhodes (Ruffalo) is reluctantly pulled from an ongoing case to investigate the robbery, and is forced to work with newbie Interpol agent Alma Dray (Laurent). Rhodes is skeptical but vows to solve the case. The Horsemen are also pursued by Thaddeus Bradley (Freeman), a former magician who is now famous and wealthy for revealing magician's secrets. With the stakes getting higher with each trick, can the FBI solve the case before someone gets hurt?
I have been interested in this film since I first saw the trailer several months ago. This week I finally had a free evening and decided to take a chance... and I was not disappointed.
The film is set up like a magic trick, with the audience guessing along with the detectives: you only see what the detectives see. Don't read spoiler reviews before seeing this film or you will miss out on some interesting twists. I thoroughly enjoyed trying to guess what would happen next (I guessed 2 of the twists, yay me!). It is refreshing to see a film that isn't predictable. In some cases the payoffs are complicated, but intriguing... and you don't see the ending coming.
Director, Louis Leterrier is known
for action films (Transporter, Transporter 2, The Incredible Hulk), and doesn’t disappoint here. Once all the characters are introduced, it
becomes a long chase, with the detectives’ one step behind. There is a mesmerizing fight, using magician
props, and an intense car chase, and enough suspense to keep you interested. In addition to the action and stylized camera
work, there is a healthy dose of humor.
The cast is excellent. The actors stick with their wheelhouse,
playing characters they’ve played before, but use expectations to keep you on
your toes, particularly with Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine. Jesse Eisenberg is the smartest guy in the room, and knows it. Woody Harrelson is charming and off-color. Isla Fisher is pretty but complicated. Dave Franco is talented, but overlooked... much like in real life (his brother is James Franco). Freeman gets to delivery heavy exposition, but you don't notice because it's Morgan Freeman. Caine is the wise mentor who is willing to over-look shady dealings. I don't know much about Melanie Laurent (I've only seen her in The Beginners and Inglorious Basterds) or the characters she tends to play, but she is fine here. Mark Ruffalo is the complicated and conflicted lead.
While this film won’t appeal to
everyone, it is an enjoyable summer flick and worth the price of admission.
Director: Louis Leterrier
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg as J. Daniel Atlas
Mark Ruffalo as Dylan Rhodes
Woody Harrelson as Merritt McKinney
Isla Fisher as Henley Reeves
Dave Franco as Jack Wilder
Melanie Laurent as Alma Dray
Morgan Freeman as Thaddeus Bradley
Michael Caine as Arthur Tressler
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