I liked this movie, and yet I didn't

Rating: 6/10 (20 March 2007)

Odd, but I did have mixed feelings after I watched this movie!
Technically the movie is perfection! The set-pieces and costumes are excellent. The lighting is used very effectively and the usage of older camera techniques such as the camera eye fade really do set the scene superbly. You almost believe you are watching 19th century Vienna, it's that good!
The acting too is excellent. I have always been a fan of Edward Norton, his performance as Eienheim the Illusionist here is very enigmatic and engaging. I have heard gripes about his accent but I could't see a problem. Rufus Sewell and Paul Giamati are also outstanding in their supporting roles. Sewell's Crown Prince exudes menace and authority in the right proportions while Giamati's police inspector struggles to balance his respect and admiration for Eisenheim (which he conveys flawlessly) with his allegiance to the Crown Prince and his wishes.
**Spoilers ahead**
The problem with this movie is the plot, mainly in terms of the final 'twist'. In essence a 'twist' only really works when you don't see it coming, sadly this is not the case here. The movie gave away far too many hints too early to make the twist effective, particularly early dialogue between Eisenheim and Sophie. I won't go into specifics, suffice to say that I almost didn't expect the twist coming because that seemed too obvious. So I suppose you could say the twist worked as a double bluff!
Another problem I had with this movie were the illusions or 'tricks' Eisenheim performed. Throughout the film we are treated to several examples of these, and with few exceptions the illusions are so wondrous that had you seen someone perform these for real they would appear truly 'magical'. So, of course, in the end when the film attempts to explain the 'Orange Tree' illusion as purely mechanical fakery, this just doesn't seem feasible, it looks too real, too perfect! The same goes for all of Eisenheim's illusions, it is simply not believable that they were performed to the standards we saw with the technology available in the late 19th century.
So, in summary, overall I enjoyed the movie because it was executed so well, but the key plot points could have done with a little more thought to make them effective. 6/10