The Illusionist

"The Illusionist"

Starring Edward Norton and Jessica Biel

Rated PG-13

By Matthew Grayson

Watch out, Romeo and Juliet. Step aside, Tristan and Isolde. Star-crossed lovers are back on the big screen, and this time they’ve got magic to boot.

Based on a short story by Steven Millhauser, “The Illusionist” is a tale of two lovers of different social status who will stop at nothing to be together. Set in Vienna at the end of the 19th century, this supernatural mystery is a period film that’s as stunning visually as it is emotionally.

When a young magician named Eisenheim (Edward Norton) is forbidden to pursue a relationship with his beloved Dutchess Sophie von Teschen (Jessica Biel), he travels the world to learn the secrets of his trade. The two are reunited years later and waste no time in rekindling their former passion.

This chance encounter comes much to the dismay of the power-hungry Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell), who plots to marry Sophie against her will. Leopold enlists the help of Chief Inspector Uhl (Paul Giamatti) to dig up dirt on the universally popular Eisenheim, and what follows is a finely crafted and expertly paced story of love, death and intrigue that left me guessing until the end.

With coaching from renowned magician David Blaine, Norton appears far more comfortable performing mind-boggling magic tricks than he does speaking in an Austrian accent. However, the rest of his performance is superb. Even in the company of Leopold, Eisenheim remains calm, collective and undeniably cool. Norton, no surprise here, plays the part to perfection.

The real shocker in “The Illusionist” comes not at the end but rather every time Biel enters the scene. The character of Sophie is a far cry from Mary Camden on “7th Heaven,” and Biel surprised me with the grace and eloquence she brings to the role of a potential princess. And she happens to look the part as well.

In a movie with its fair share of facial hair, Sewell’s handlebar mustache is a work of art, and his acting isn’t bad either. Likewise for Giamatti, who’s convincing both as a 19th century Austrian and as a police inspector obsessed with uncovering the secrets behind Eisenheim’s magic.
Throughout the film, director Neil Burger draws a mighty thin line between illusion and reality. One’s belief in magic, or lack thereof, quickly becomes irrelevant, for what is the purpose of magic if not to entertain, awe and enchant its audience?

The film’s gorgeous special effects do all three, and its cinematography successfully recreates a fascinating world in which a magician, a prince and the lovely Jessica Biel all look right at home.
Perhaps the only downfall of “The Illusionist” is its surprise ending, which leaves the viewer scrambling to remember clues that are, in fact, nonexistent.

As a smile slowly spreads across his face, Uhl pieces together the puzzle after the fact in a fashion not unlike that famous scene in “Usual Suspects” to which all too many directors aspire. The pacing of the flashback, though, is far too rapid and far too sequential. Nobody’s mind works like that, not even a chief inspector’s.

Still, “The Illusionist” is a clever love story with a fine cast and finer special effects. Viewers will want to believe Eisenheim’s beautiful tricks, if only because magic never looked this good.