Review of Magic in the Moonlight (2014) by Alailson B — 01 Sep 2014

Woody Allen seems to have a very obvious pattern running through his filmography, especially evident over recent years. Directing on such a prolific scale, he makes a terrific film every other year (Midnight in Paris, Blue Jasmine) and the next year brings a very "okay" entry like To Rome With Love and...I'm guessing you're aware of where this is going. Magic in the Moonlight stars Colin Firth as an ironically grounded and pragmatic magician, Stanley; and Emma Stone as a mysterious medium who has thus far convinced everyone of her ability, Sophie, albeit with the use of techniques/mannerisms that strike Firth as particularly suspicious and unbelievable. One day, Firth is informed that this ubiquitous lady is visiting a wealthy family's home (perhaps a perfect target for duplicity to reap a sizable reward for herself?) and is therefore asked to scrutinize her authenticity. Seeing as he's extremely cynical and hardheaded about all this supernatural phenomena, Stanley is almost determined to go in there and reveal her as an unmitigated fraud.

Always bringing his natural charisma and charm, Firth stands as the absolute highlight of this show, certainly portraying the most interesting character of the lot and leaving the rest of the cast to fill fairly one-dimensional roles-yes, including Emma Stone. Now, I am about tired of this very predictable evolution of character development that screenwriting teachers have implanted into artists' minds. Stanley begins the story as a skeptic but suddenly starts to gradually alter his mind about the ordeal, and boom, he's almost a new man by the end. It's a tired method from Hollywood and something that shouldn't be necessary in the composition of a script. In fact, I find character development, in general, a potential outlet for all sorts of clichés and cop-outs. It just so happens that in reality, some people never change. Some men end their life's story as the same man they entered adulthood as.

With all that being said, Firth's character is still undoubtedly entertaining to say the least, a predominant reason behind the genuine hilarity found herein. I've admitted it at the very beginning of my review: it's an okay film, really, but certainly hilarious at the same time. A lot of dry/British humor surprisingly lends itself well to an American movie, but then again, Allen has proved time and time again how versatile he truly is. Match Point was permeated with British culture, and his willingness to research (other) European cultures extends to pictures like Vicky Cristina Barcelona and From Rome With Love. The premise in this case commences intriguingly with a fascinating chase to ultimately prove spirituality and the supernatural world a falsity, but the narrative in between unfortunately transforms the film into another formulaic and predictable rom-com in which Emma Stone underwhelms.

First of all, there's an almost 30-year age gap between the two, surely creating an awkward and strange aura. Yes, there just might be couples out there in the world that share a similarly drastic difference in age, but such a pairing is rather infrequent. Of course, it's a Hollywood production though, and that means the two leads will inherently fall in love by the end of its tale, no matter their age or circumstances (both factors contribute to the relationship's implausibility). Stanley stays true to himself for most of the plot; even though he has a wife and is constantly pushing Sophie away from himself with the addition of some terribly rude remarks, she still tries to latch onto him to an increasingly more annoying degree. All in all, the initial charming and amusing spirit eventually dwindles and turns into pure sappiness and banality.