Caper film that is a little too dependent on surprises

Rating: 6/10 (31 May 2013)

Now You See Me is a film that is all about obfuscation. Focusing on four magicians that perform feats of wonder first separately and later together, from the first frame on, the film engages in cinematic sleight of hand. However, that formula backfires on the film: by constantly trying to engage in trickery, the audience finds itself always on the lookout for it, and by the time it starts winding down, most of the potential surprises are rendered moot by the fact that we were looking for and expecting said surprises. Thus, while Now You See Me is fun and engaging at times, as a twist-filled surprise machine, it falls flat on it's face.
As the film opens, we are introduced to four illusionists: fast talking street-level card sharp Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), "mentalist" and small-time con man Merrit McKinney (Woody Harrelson), spoon-bending junior magician Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) and show-stopping high-thrills Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher). All of them are given a special card with an address and time on it, and when they all show up at the prescribed time and place, a small apartment in New York, they discover what appears to be a quite elaborate set of plans. Flash forward one year later, and the four magicians are performing as a single act under the moniker The Four Horsemen and are being bankrolled by millionaire Arthur Tressler (Michael Caine) During their debut performance in Las Vegas, they close their act with a rather spectacular accomplishment: they transport a French audience member to his bank in France and proceed to steal several billion dollars from it and magically transport it back to the Las Vegas auditorium where they pour it onto the audience.
Unsurprisingly, this gets the attention of the FBI, and agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) is assigned to the case. He teams up with Interpol agent Alma Dray (Melanie Laurent) and interrogates the Four Horsemen, but with nothing to pin on them, is forced to let them walk. Rhodes seeks the counsel of former magician Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman) who now spends his time debunking magicians, revealing what is "behind the curtain". With Bradley's help, Rhodes is able to unravel what happened at the first performance, but the Four Horsemen are already moving on to New Orleans for their next show and Rhodes and Dray are trying to stay one step ahead of them.
Now You See Me is a film that is intended to keep us on our toes, to leave the audience guessing and wondering what the next revelation is going to be. Sometimes these kind of films can work well, engaging in misdirection and providing red herrings and dead ends for us to believe in before showing us what is really going on. Where Now You See Me missteps is that, from very early in the proceedings, the film telegraphs its intentions so loudly that most of the enjoyment of being caught up in twists is lost. That the twists are such a central part of the film is obvious from the start and makes them less engaging than if they evolved more naturally out of the narrative. Now You See Me is designed and built almost exclusively to keep us guessing but by focusing almost exclusively on that, it overreaches.
Now You See Me isn't helped by the fact that the main characters are, save for some quickly introduced character moments and a few exchanges of witty dialogue, almost completely ciphers. Atlas, McKinnney, Wilder and Reeves are barely developed at all, and frankly, excepting for the moments they are performing their stage acts, are not even afforded that much screen time. The screenplay does play a bit with the intentions of the characters, but it is obvious that we are supposed to be rooting for them at times, and it makes it difficult to work up much enthusiasm for them when we barely know them. More screen time is afforded to Rhodes and Dray, and the two develop a romantic chemistry that is palpable at times, but, much like the other characters, they are largely pawns of the screenplay, but they are at least given more to work with than the magicians.
Director Louis Leterrier films Now You See Me in Michael Bay mode: the camera rarely stops moving for more than a few seconds. During the magic acts, especially the first one in Vegas, this does bring a degree of style to the proceedings but at times the over reliance on an endlessly moving camera can prove distracting. However, Leterrier does keep the pace brisk and the energy level high. Now You See Me certainly can't be called boring.
If Now You See Me succeeds anywhere, it is in the casting. Leterrier has pulled together a strong set of performers and, especially regarding the Four Horsemen, what is sometimes lacking in the screenplay is made up for by likable actors. Eisenberg makes Atlas a fast talking smart alec with a nice streak of charisma, Harrelson gives some fun wisecracks and Fisher is, once again, a strong sensual presence with a degree of toughness. Morgan Freeman can't help but class up anything he appears in and his turn here is no different, his Bradley is nice mix of arrogance and charm. Ruffalo is also at his dependable best, a man fighting to stay with his fugitives while barely managing to stay on top of their capers.
It may sound like I am down on Now You See Me, but that isn't completely true. By the time the film was over, I found myself pleasantly engaged and entertained at times, but so much is wrapped up in the film's obvious Rube Goldberg plotting that you can't but help feel disappointed when the film doesn't really deviate from where you expect. Now You See Me is like sneaking a peek at your Christmas gifts: knowing what is coming isn't as much fun as not knowing.