Apparently snarky, complicated explanations are magic

Rating: 3/10 (6 April 2020)

Like a lot of heist or magic movies, Now You See Me tries to seem smart and exciting by pulling the wool over everyone's eyes. The problem is that, unlike a good magic trick, the truth of how all the convoluted action takes place is not right under our noses. The explanations are just so strange and specific that the viewer is left behind - some things are just never explained at all.
And I stopped wanting an explanation early on. The characters aren't very involving, and most of what happens makes less sense than if it were just a fantasy movie with actual magic as a plot point.
Still there is entertainment in the off-the-wall action and in the practical jokes laced throughout. You might enjoy this movie more if you can heavily suspend disbelief. Unfortunately, I just didn't believe that the writers knew what was going on either.