The Illusionist

Now this is the kind of movie that I hoped “Lady in the Water” would be: Magical, mysterious, incredibly stylish. One of the best movies that I’ve seen in years.

“The Illusionist” takes a number of chances that shouldn’t work — How many great movies about the turn-of-the-century Austro-Hungarian Empire are there? And when’s the last time there was a truly great movie about stage magic? — and makes them all work. It even puts a former teen star/sex symbol in the leading female role and then shoots (almost) the entire film in sepia tone and with an early 20th century film vocabulary.

It shouldn’t work, but just like the tricks of Eisenheim the Illusionist, it does, and you find yourself marveling at the results. I don’t want to give away too much of the plot — its twists and “I can’t believe he’s doing that” element are a great part of the fun — but Edward Norton portrays Eisenheim, a stage illusionist whom fate and the forbidden love of a duchess (the surprisingly believable Jessica Biel) puts on a collision course with the violent and amoral crown prince of the empire (Rufus Sewell). The movie is a cat and mouse game between the magician and prince, with the wonderful Paul Giamatti (playing a role very unlike his normal nebbishes) caught in the middle.

“The Illusionist” gets the strongest possible recommendation for all audiences. (Even the sex scenes are 1920s fade-out tasteful.)

1 Comment »

1. Y’know, when I got the movie in Netflix, I read the description and saw the word “romance” and decided that Beau wouldn’t want to see it. So I went ahead and started to watch it by myself. It drew my attention in so nicely that I didn’t notice Beau coming home and asking what I was watching. I didn’t even mind starting the movie over again so he could join me! I was only 30 minutes into it, which says a lot about my willingness to rewatch the beginning — it was that enthralling.

   Comment by Jenn — January 18, 2007 @ 11:05

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