Norton’s Magic No Illusion

2006_the_illusionist_wallpaper_0012Combining fantastic performances from Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, Rufus Sewell and Paul Giamatti, with an entertaining story, the Illusionist is a tour-de-force that will keep movie-goers on the edge of their seats until the very end.

Taking place in Vienna at the turn of the 20th century, Norton [Red Dragon, Fight Club] plays a young magician named Eisenheim, who comes back to the city to reclaim his lost love, Sophie, played by Jessica Biel [Blade Trinity]. Unfortunately for the two however, there are a few obstacles in the way of their love, including the Prince of Vienna, played by Rufus Sewell [Helen of Troy, A Night’s Tale] and the Chief Police Inspector played by Paul Giamatti [Private Parts, Sideways] that will do anything to keep them apart.

On paper, having Norton and Biel involved in a love affair doesn’t sound too enthralling, but the shrewdness of Sewell, who Biel’s character is also involved with, makes it possible for Norton and Biel to pass off as a compatible pair. Paul Giamatti also plays a huge part in their compatibility as well, trying to balance his morals and ethics while being the corrupt errand boy of the Crown Prince that works to keep them apart as well.

With this love story providing the backbone of the film, fans of Norton and his days in movies like “Red Dragon” and “Fight Club” will fall in love with “The Illusionist” due to the many twist turns that engulf the movie and keep viewers guessing throughout. Movie-goers will also be wondering if Eisenheim’s elaborate and shocking magic tricks are a sham or in fact real, making him a modern-day Messiah, rather than a common theater magician.

This diversity in the plot of “The Illusionist,” being able to have significant development in both the area of love and magic, is, in a sense, the straw that stirs the film’s drink. Those who are turned off by love stories will have no problem contemplating if Eisenheim has super natural powers or not. The struggle between Sewell, Giamatti and Norton is also an entertaining one that adds even more brevity to the film and goes as far to prove that Sewell and Giamatti are ready to assume more leading roles, instead of being shackled in supporting roles for as long as they have.

On the whole, “The Illusionist” does a splendid job of combining elements of the romance, mystery and thriller genres in creating a movie that can be enjoyed by a wide array of audiences. The sense of style and charisma from its protagonist and supporting cast is enough in itself to watch the film, while the depth of the plot and sound atmosphere will eventually force one to see it again.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14316 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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