Magicians

Two of the best films of 2006 involve sleight of hands, illusions, and pure movie wizardry.  Yep – both dark, but vastly different in tone and plot.. but both deal with magicians.

Christopher Nolan strikes again with The Prestige, a magic trick disguised as a movie, and the twists, turns, loops, and entanglements will keep viewers busy gasping for more.  Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman strikes perfect pitch as dueling magicians in life and death, and the supporting cast (including a very subdued Michael Caine) rounds out an incredible music box of a story.  Five out of five stars.

But man!  The Illusionist, starring an Edward Norton at his best (much better than his other period movie the Painted Veil), the intense Paul Giamatti, and a very pretty Jessica Biel (and her awesome rear), is a spectacle that leaves its ending with a predictable but wholly enjoyable and goose-bumpy twist.  Set in Vienna in the late 19th century, the fairy-tale plot has gorgeous sepia shots of the city as it was before the world wars, and just the cinematography alone justifies the DVD rental.  Where the love story in the Prestige conjures dark cynicism, the Illusionist pulls a hat trick after hat trick.. delighting while leaving any substantive opinions just out of reach.  Everything fits in this puzzle: the story, the acting, the pacing, the score.. Bravo. Best movie of the year.  Six out of five stars.

The Illusionist just made my favorite movie list – after one viewing... and this even with Biel's shaky Austrian accent!  And (!) all the illusions were real as they were done in the fine de siecle – no CGI!

well, i like the illusionist but I am surprised to find you liked it this much. I mean, it's good but not amazing to me. Definitely had my attention the whole time and where I do agree 100% is on the cinematography. The light works is what does the trick, very cool.

Will check out the prestige. This year I have seen so few movies.

Posted by: vinny | January 31, 2007 at 07:31 PM

Yeah I think you will like the Prestige. You should check into torrents. Try Azareus.com for a client and look up torrentspy as a place to get them. I saw both movies this way. I really like the Illusionist cause it's a simple story done well... plus I like to reminisce about the scenes from the Czech Republic.

Posted by: j.fisher | January 31, 2007 at 08:38 PM