Why? No Reason.

Rating: 4/10 (26 September 2013)

It frankly doesn't surprise me that this film has received more positive than negative feedback; it gives an audience almost everything the trailers and cast lead them to believe they'll get. Plenty of twists, turns, face time with noteworthy actors and a story that doesn't force you to believe in magic in order to believe what's happening on screen. All that being said, there is a minority of viewers, myself included, who know they could have done much more with all the talent and potential lying within Now You See Me...or maybe they couldn't, and shouldn't have bothered to try.
I'm hesitant to say the movie is bad, because deep down it truly isn't. Everyone, from Woody Harrelson to Michael Caine and every name-drop in between does their job and fits in snug with what's going on. Somewhere between the intriguing first 20 minutes and the disappointing last hour or so, I kept asking myself, "why am I not enjoying this?" The answer? It could have been so much more.
Hasty references to the "why" of it all do nothing to satisfy the curiosity of the curious, and when the final credits rolled, I realized that this was the point all along. Even after the major reveal takes place and you finally understand the "how", the "why" never materializes. The introduction of the film makes that question the focal point, and the rest of the film does its best to make you forget you ever had the question in your head to begin with.
Again, I can understand the praise, but I felt as if left the theater having been cheated out of my money. Considering a couple of the main scenes in the film, perhaps this was the filmmakers' entire goal to begin with. It wouldn't surprise me in the least. Regardless, most people seemed to enjoy it, so there's no reason to bash it any further than by saying it simply wasn't what I wanted it to be. It happens sometimes.