Cast: Jesse Eisenberg,
Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Lizzy Caplan, Dave Franco, Morgan Freeman,
Daniel Radcliffe, Michael Caine, Sanaa Lathan, Jay Chou, Tsai Chin, Henry
Lloyd-Hughes, Justine Wachsberger, Ben Lamb, David Warshofsky, Richard Laing Director: Jon M. Chu 115 mins |
It is stressed throughout "Now You See Me 2" how important it is for renegade magicians The Four Horsemen to work together "as one organism." For a film supposedly dealing with camaraderie—even one where they collectively race around, yet exhibit little interpersonal connection with each other—it comes as hypocritical and disingenuous that this infamous quartet is missing one of its original members from 2013's NYSM1. Unsympathetically shut out of the proceedings is Isla Fisher in this sexist screenplay, where it curtly suggests she wanted out of the group following a romantic break-up with Jesse Eisenberg's J. Daniel Atlas. With the obligatory need for someone to fill her shoes, Solomon devises the forced introduction of Lula (Lizzy Caplan), who cheerily declares, "I'm the girl Horseman!" Another example of virtually every other tedious, bland minute in this disposably empty-headed sequel.
Anarchic magic team The Four Horsemen have been in hiding from the FBI for 18 months, having pulled off an ingenious NYC-based illusion on their way to moving closer to learning the secrets behind a coveted underground organisation known as The Eye. With Horsemen mastermind Special Agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) still playing both sides of the law, members J. Daniel Atlas, Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson) and Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) are joined by Lula as they prepare for a surprise re-emergence at an OCTA tech company conference. When their performance is unexpectedly hijacked by a pixilated mystery figure as the authorities close in, their narrow escape sends them to Macau and into the clutches of Walter Mabry (Daniel Radcliffe), the presumed-dead former co-head of OCTA. Walter wants the Four Horsemen to pull off the impossible heist of a heavily guarded microchip, and he is willing to blackmail them with their lives to get it.
"Now You See Me 2" is more of the same hamfisted, ham-acted, drearily written, camera-aware utterly duff performances. For those like me who were not overly enamoured by Part 1, this strained continuation repeats the same mistakes. Director Jon M. Chu takes over for Louis Letterier, but the poor continuity/ inferior editing continues. Dylan Rhodes still blames a tragedy from his past on magic debunker Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), whom he has framed and sent to prison, but he finds himself seeking Thaddeus' help to locate the missing Horsemen. Beyond this, the people on the screen are recognisable faces but without anything behind their physical visages. The script gives the actors forgettable things to say and no facets to explore. The Horsemen are outright criminals, breaking laws, causing chaos and putting occasional lives in danger simply so they can learn the tediously complex secrets of The Eye. Why viewers should like or care about these dreary, unpleasant, posturing individuals is never divulged. One expects the incorporation of Merritt's twin brother Chase (Woody Harrelson, in a dual role) to add up to more than it does, but the whole thing squanders this quirky development. As smarmy central bad guy Walter Mabry, Daniel Radcliffe continues to plod on in cinema, but regrettably it has to be said that he will always be just too wee and slight and Pottery to ever be taken really seriously in a challenging role. He clearly has the talent, but the looks don’t match up. Both Sir Michael of Caine and Morgan ‘God’ Freeman as usual, simply phone in their performances - and don’t start me on Eisenberg.
A tedious chase and heist caper in one, "Now You See Me 2" culminates in a series of elaborate, seemingly impossible illusions taking place across London on Hogmanay—quite amazing not for the tricks themselves, but for the revelation that it is taking place on December 31 when there has not been a single indication prior to this that the story is occurring during the festive season. This is systemic of the haphazard and neglectful construction of the film as a whole. "Now You See Me 2" isn't exciting, it’s not funny nor is it surprising. As the full nature of the Horsemen's final apparently master trick is explained via ludicrous, clumsy, clunky exposition, the film as a whole evaporates into thin air.
Cast: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Bill Hader, Penelope Wilton, Rafe Spall, Rebecca Hall
Director: Steven Speilberg
115 mins
Spielberg’s films invariably exude a sense of child-like wonder and expansive imagination. Whatever his target market’s age, most filmgoers simply display slack-jawed amazement at his ability to capture and tell a story. With The BFG, based upon Roald Dahl’s tale – he offers a film of entertainment and enchantment. It opens after midnight in London as the city is finally winding down, with noisy drunks exiting the pub as darkened corners become even blacker. This is also the hour at which a giant mysterious figure (quite beautifully played by Mark Rylance) emerges from the shadows to secretly bestow dreams upon the children of London.
However, a still wide-awake Sophie (Ruby Barnhill) manages to catch a glimpse of him, and immediately her entire world is turned upside down. Fearing she’ll tell someone and endanger his nocturnal existence, the street intruder whisks her away to his homeland, Giant Country, where this huge-eared, grey-haired hero identifies himself as the Big Friendly Giant, or “The BFG.” He outlines his woes to Sophie, in that that he is constantly being bullied by the other, much larger, giants because of his comparatively smaller stature and his utter lack of desire (unlike them) for consuming humans. The two become immediate chums, but inevitably the grotesque cannibalistic brutes arrive on the scene to disrupt their harmony. From the Dream Country sequence where we see the pair capturing dreams like twinkling fireflies, to the sequence where the grotesque giants ransack and almost destroy the BFG’s home as they frantically search for Sophie, there are some quite spectacular immersive set-pieces. BFG crafts his specially-curated dreams and when he poignantly speaks of “Sophie’s Dream” - things like a character getting hit in the vitals and “whizzpopping” (the term the BFG uses for explosive flatulence) will undoubtedly entertain younger viewers.
Newcomer Barnhill as Sophie is a revelation. She’s feisty, charming, never precocious and incredibly intelligent, instinctively playing her character’s vulnerability and nuances without going anywhere near over the top. Despite being almost unrecognisable through CGI, the heart of Rylance’s brilliant performance pulsates through the screen. There are many scenes where you can see his character’s desperate sadness, hurt, disappointment and proud bravery right there in his eyes, and both leads’ chemistry is apparent and tangible, with their characters’ relationship being the driving force throughout. Steven Spielberg has created yet another magical work of art, destined to live long in the minds and hearts of film audiences now and in the future.
