Good Movie, Falling Short Of Being a Great Movie

Rating: 7/10 (16 August 2010)

"The Illusionist" was released in the same year as "The Prestige". Both deal with magic and mystery. Definitely, it would be absurd to write a movie review comparing with another movie, but it's important to have some sort of benchmark for comparison, a benchmark nearly achieved by "The Prestige" and missed by "The Illusionist".
"The Illusionist" stars Edward Norton. This ever bankable actor has the ability to carry the entire movie on his shoulder and he nearly does the same here. Supported well by Jessica Biel and Paul Giamatti, the film has a good casting, a feat achieved by 'The Prestige" too.
The strength of this movie includes its sets and screenplay. The movie has a haunting atmosphere that greatly adds to the tension maintained throughout the movie. The sets are very believable and the entire aura greatly corresponds the movie's mysterious theme. The running time is good and the movie pace is very engaging and audience will always crave for details. If you consider the set design, movie pace and screenplay; "The Illusionist" scores better than "The Prestige".
The biggest drawback of "The Illusionist" is the lack of trick details and the climax. Having said that, I like the climax of "The Illusionist", but none of the tricks preformed by Ed Norton were ever explained and hence, even though liking the twist ending, one never gets to know the authenticity of the twist. On the other hands, every bit of tricks is revealed in "The Prestige' and hence, the end twist completely augur well with the film plot and the tricks preformed.
Overall, watch this movie. Everyone who has seen this movie has liked it. But if you have panache for details, then you might be disappointed. Or, you can take up the challenge and crack the Illusionist's tricks.
My Verdict: 7/10