Review by Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong
Screenwriter Ed Solomon returns to the Now You See Me Sequel along with director Jon M. Chu to bring the audience a Movie that is incredibly-entertaining and filled with as much fun and excitement as its first installment. Now You See Me 2 has a similar plot point to the first Movie, except this time they’re a little more clear about who The Eye is and have to pull off an even more elaborate heist this time and welcome some new players to the game. With everything that is going on in Now You See Me 2, as Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg) says in the first Movie, “always be the smartest one in the room” truly applies to follow the intricate story with twists and turns left right and centre.
The Movie starts back in the 1980s as we witness Lionel Shrike (Richard Laing) perform his last trick that ultimately leads to his death, trying to escape from a safe at the bottom of a body of water. As we learned in the first Movie this fuels the hatred between Dylan (Mark Ruffalo) and Thaddeus (Morgan Freeman). Fast forward to modern day and we have our three magicians, Atlas, McKinney (Woody Harrelson) and Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) albeit missing is Henley (Isla Fisher) who ends up being replaced by Lula (Lizzy Caplan). After being named one of the worlds best teams of magicians they are marked by newcomer to the franchise Walter (Daniel Radcliffe) and enlisted to pull off one of the hardest heists they’ve been put up to yet, steal a computer chip from Walter’s former partner. The question is can the Four Horsemen ban together one more time and accomplish, essentially, the impossible?
The performances in Now You See Me 2 truly make the Movie magical. Lizzy Caplan who has a big pair of shoes to fill taking over from Isla Fisher and while it is a very different take on the character, it is certainly a more fun and interesting take. Jesse Eisenberg who portrays the egotistical, essentially self-centered Atlas does another terrific job at perfecting the character. However it is Woody Harrelson who I find manages to steal the show amongst the horseman for being one of the funniest and outlandish characters amongst the pack. Moreover, every Movie has a villain and the stronger the villain the better the Movie, Now You See Me 2 is no different in this case. Daniel Radcliffe is an excellent villain who owns the role and commands the screen in a way that is almost reminiscent of his Harry Potter days. He is cast perfectly as Walter and the antagonist throughout the Film. Mark Ruffalo and Morgan Freeman also appear to be having an incredibly-fun time working on the project.
What makes Now You See Me 2 such a crowd-pleaser is that, despite rehashing the story from the first Film it is done in such a way that is innovative. It is a Movie about a group of Robin Hood posed magicians essentially; it has to bring joy and fun, which it does at every single beat. Now You See Me 2 is the Film that enhances movie magic.
eOne Films release NOW YOU SEE ME 2 in theatres on Friday June 10, 2016.
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