Sometimes you don't want to do work and tonight was one of those nights. So I put it off a little bit to watch The Illusionist (2006), a film set in the early 1900s Austria where all the actors are Americans with fake accents. But what a great cast, Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti kick actor ass all over the place with Norton as the title character and Giamatti as a corrupt Police inspector. And Jessica Biel does a great job of looking good while Norton and a Crown Prince fights for her love.
A little backstory, the Norton character (I think the character is named Eisentem or something) meets Jessica Biel (the Dutchess of Burger King? A Dutchess for sure) as kids and she falls for his lower class wanna be magician ways. The officials find out and break the pair up while Biel's kid character begs Norton's to make them disappear. Norton's character leaves town and becomes a famous magician.
When Norton returns to town as the famous Eisenham, he immediately makes a play for the Dutchess of Cobble stone though she's dating the future Emperor of Austira. The Crown Prince has the Police inspector watch Biel and shake down Norton. Then the plot thickens with twists and near messianic Magic.
The movie itself is a strong acting piece that allows these talented players a chance to really show what they can do. The settings and costumes are appropriate and everything is filmed in a brownish haze that says "old tyme movie!" Norton plays the enigmatic central character with both intense feeling and intellectual ambiguity. Giamatti also excels as a corrupt cop wrestling with his conscience. The movie is directed in a tight, cagey style that is familiar to anyone whose seen a costume drama mystery but holds your attention nontheless. My only problem with the movie was the digital effects, thought they were overdone and should have had real magic tricks closer to what was possible in that day and age.
Some film person once said the only Love story that interests people are doomed love stories. It is certainly true with this movie and it delivers something rare in modern film: interesting characters and a well told story that aspires to be nothing more than a good movie. The ending is a little predictable, but most of the way through the film it keeps you guessing which direction the movie will go. It's a good flick worth seeing.
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