The Illusionist
24 October 2006, lunch time
I watched the The Illusionist last night. I haven’t seen the Prestige just yet, but I suspect that if you are going to watch one film about magicians operating in the late 19th century, make sure its not the Illusionist. I didn’t think it was particularly good. It stars Edward Norton, who I felt did a pretty so-so job in the film. Paul Giamatti and Rufus Sewell did much better jobs with their roles. Even Jessica Biel couldn’t save the film. It just wasn’t that interesting. (I would have liked the film more if Ed Norton’s first lines were: “Look, I’m not my father. I don’t do cabinets. I’m an illusionist. That’s who I am. That’s what I do.”)
I have seen both, saw The Prestige Saturday night. It is unquestionably significantly better. Actually it was quite good, a great screenplay. And Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale did a better job with the material, I felt (and Norton is my favorite actor, so…).
I highly recommend The Prestige. The Illusionist is a rental, at best.
by Ben on October 24 2006, 12:43 pm #
Well, Ricky Jay appeared in The Prestige and not The Illusionist, so that should tell you something. I also thought The Prestige was much better. Even though they both feature stage magic around the same historical period, they’re not really similar at all.
by mk on October 24 2006, 11:32 pm #