Review of The Illusionist (2006) by Jillian L — 15 May 2012

So, I'm just going to make the comparison now. I think The Prestige was better. It was quicker paced, the magic was bigger, and the twist ending was fantastic. This movie was slower paced, as was the magic, and the twist ending was good.

Now, all that being said this is still a decent movie on its own. It's just hard to not compare it to the movie about magicians in the turn of the century that came out that same year. But, as a stand alone movie, it's pretty good.

The plot is really interesting. However, it starts to lag after the big event in the middle of the movie. (I didn't want to ruin it). Edward Norton as Eisenheim and Paul Giamatti as the Police Inspector are both impressive, I would expect no less.

I was pleasantly surprised by Jessica Biel, who I thought was pretty good. I just wish they had given the character a little more. The scene where she leaves the Crown Prince could have been so much better if they had just taken their time with it.

Like I said earlier, the twist ending was pretty good, I didn't really figure it out until the character did, which I guess was the point. Overall, pretty good movie, but if you want something from the same vein that is better, watch The Prestige.