Far Too Simple Slight of Hand
- Title: The Illusionist
- IMDb: link
How critically do you watch films? I ask this because a film like The Illusionist presupposes its audience to watch for entertainment and not pay too close attention to the man behind the curtain. I dislike movies that take the audience’s intelligence and attention for granted. This film assumes you are relatively dumb and unobservant. If you, like me, watch a film, especially a suspense film, with a careful eye then you will no doubt be disappointed. The Illusionist is all too willing, and eager, to give away its secrets.
The movie begins in a way that infuriates me. It begins at the end, with the illusionist Eisenheim (Edward Norton) being arrested for his performances by Chief Inspector Uhl (Paul Giamatti). The film then takes place in a long flashback that explains the events leading up to this moment. Why give away this much information in the first three minutes of the film? Well since the film seems so eager to give away its secrets, I guess it doesn’t really matter.
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Let’s get this out of the way right now – the film does not, in any way, exploit the events of 9/11. In a strange way, in fact, it celebrates the good that came out of such a horrific tragedy. 