Review of Magic in the Moonlight (2014) by Kevin M. W — 13 Aug 2014

A Woody Allen penned and directed work, but unfortunately his age (79) is showing. While the visuals are comprehensive, the sense of the era embraced fully (with an undercurrent of nostalgia as thick as he presented in Midnight In Paris), the language is stilted in places, despite the best efforts of the actors (Colin Firth and Emma Stone, both warmly charismatic) to bring humanity expressed on the page to life.

The story is a light romantic jazz riff (the background score ever reminds) on a true event involving the famous Harry Houdini's attempts to expose a "real" paranormal medium. The idea is seductive and almost nearly wins one over ... until the characters open their mouths to speak.