Review of The Illusionist (2006) by Conner R — 21 Feb 2011

2006 was blessed with two awesome magician movies, The Prestige and The Illusionist. Both have their strengths, this happens to excel at the possibility of real magic. Edward Norton gives a commanding performance in his crazy goatee and bizarre clothing, but it's really surprising how vulnerable the character was played.

It also has the go-to villain of the 00s, Rufus Sewell. Much like in Knight's Tale, he literally embodies an evil mastermind without compassion for others. I like the romantic element of this a lot.

While it's all too common in stories like this to have a deceiving woman behind the scenes, this really had no problem being black and white with its characters. From the minute they appear on screen, you know exactly what each character stands for.

While that might hurt some plots, it only strengthens this one.