A testament to mediocrity.

Rating: 5/10 (16 July 2013)

"Now You See Me" is the newest film from french director Louis Leterrier, the man behind the "Incredible Hulk", the two "Transporter" films as well as the ever so disappointing "Clash of the Titans". "Now You See Me" tells the story of a group of magicians that call themselves "The Four Horsemen". The group consists of (big surprise) four people: "Daniel Atlas" (Jesse Eisenberg), "Henley Reeves"(Isla Fisher), "Jack Wilder"(Dave Franco) and "Merritt McKinney"(Woody Harrelson). They all possess very colorful and somewhat obnoxious personalities. Before banding together to form their group all of them were either street performers or rogue magicians. After each of them receive a mysterious card that leads them to a dingy apartment where they are given access to blueprints depicting amazing magic tricks they establish "The Four Horsemen". We then fast forward a year later, they have all become accomplished magicians and are pulling off mind bending performances together. During their show in Las Vegas they claim that for their final trick, they will rob a bank. They pick an audience member "randomly" and supposedly teleport them to a large bank in Paris. Inexplicably, they manage to steal the money. Soon enough FBI detective "Dylan Rodes" is teamed up with a young "Interpol" agent named "Alma Dray"(Melanie Laurent) and are assigned to capture "The Four Horsemen", but they just keep slipping through his fingers.
Whilst undoubtedly being fun and entertaining, the story of "Now You See Me" is so over the top and ludicrous that at times it feels a bit insulting to someones intelligence. The magicians pull off stunts that could only be described as "paranormal" and since this movie is supposed to be grounded in reality, it seems rather silly. The acting is..alright despite being overly comical that comes off as being pretty obnoxious and annoying. The visual effects aren't great, but they're not bad either. The problem with them is that it is extremely obvious that everything is computer generated. The best part of the film has to be Morgan Freeman. He can always make a film feel entertaining and always brings life to the screen. The greatest damage to the film has to be the utterly stupid plot twists. Although everything seems to add up and come together, the plot twists feel childish and unnecessary.
The film is entertaining, but chances are that you will forget it in a few days. The characters are shallow, the plot is ludicrous and the twists are childish. The best that "Now You See Me" provide is some good popcorn entertainment that you can watch with your friends. This film continues Louis Leterrier's streak of mediocrity.