Review of Magic in the Moonlight (2014) by Foxgrove — 02 Oct 2014

After the high of 'Blue Jasmine' with its engaging story, funny lines and sublime leading lady,' Magic in the Moonlight' is an almost inevitable disappointment from the inconsistent Woody Allen. Desperately lacking laughs this tale of Colin Firth's determination to unmask fraudulent medium Emma Stone comes over as a mere trifle. The story is needlessly protracted for an Allen film and would have been overlong at 80 minutes let alone 97!

Colin Firth makes little impression and most of the rest of a potentially good cast are wasted on the below par material. Eileen Atkins probably comes of best, but Emma Stone is likeable even as she starts to drown due to a poverty of ideas. In fact, only the costume design is noteworthy here capturing perfectly the 1920's setting.

Ultimately, 'Magic in the Moonlight' becomes boredom in the cinema as the already thin storyline starts to evaporate. By the end it has all but disappeared, following, it would seem, the example of one of Firth's own conjuring tricks.