Light touch and great performances

Rating: 8/10 (9 September 2006)

The Illusionist is set in the Vienna (not Venice) of the turn of the last century and draws on the Mayerling Affair as one of the threads of inspiration for the story on which it is based. Writer-director Neil Burger shows a superbly light touch in creating the period and telling the story. Edward Norton continues to demonstrate a talent normally associated with only a few exceptionally great actors on the order of Olivier and Orson Welles. Paul Giamatti is excellent as is the entire cast. What is most striking is the evocation of the period in the cinematography. Dick Pope's camera-work gets into the rarified realm of James Wong Howe and Sven Nyquist.
This is an exceptional movie that shows a superb writer-director, with a perfect cast and crew making a movie well worth the price of admission and the 2 hours in the theatre.