Review of Magic in the Moonlight (2014) by Michael C — 14 Aug 2014

In "Magic in the Moonlight," Stanley(Colin Firth), a stage magician, meets with his friend Howard(Simon McBurney), another magician, after a performance in Berlin. Howard has come to his friend with a problem. He has encountered a psychic, Sophie Baker(Emma Stone), who he is in convinced is fake and even worse in danger of fleecing his friends but cannot figure out exactly how. So, he wants Stanley to give his opinion as the chief debunker. Plus, this gives Stanley a chance to visit the south of France where his Aunt Vanessa(Eileen Atkins) lives.

Once upon a time, Woody Allen could use cinematic magic like nobody else to craft fantastical movies like "Zelig," "The Purple Rose of Cairo" and "Alice." But since then, that magic has faded, especially with his latest "Magic in the Moonlight" with its highly improbable ending. Even with some nice details, the movie has to rely on the tremendous talents of Colin Firth as the kind of pompous ass that Rod Serling used to make his living off of back in the day to provide any sort of marginal appeal. Alas, that leaves the usually delightful Emma Stone nowhere to go with her badly underwritten character.