Neil Burger's The Illusionist poses some interesting questions in one of it's early scenes. There are boundaries that govern our existence on this earth; space and time, life and death, fate and chance. "What does it take to manipulate and control these boundaries?" we're asked. And when we're confronted with what seems to be clear manipulation, can we trust our own eyes? Or is everything perhaps, as the title of the film suggests, just an illusion?
Our story takes us to turn-of-century Vienna, where the bureaucracy and the peasants alike marvel at the work of Edward Eisenheim, a clever, likable magician with seemingly supernatural powers. When the Crown Prince and his wife-to-be attend a performance of Eisenheim's, and a potential romantic connection is revealed between the magician and the fiancee, the Prince is infuriated, and assigns his chief inspector to observe him.
Director Burger utilizes a period-appropriate sepia toned cinematography, many shots having the feel of actual footage from the early 1900's. His choices in music, set-construction, and costume design are also in perfect taste, adding to the film as a whole. The actors as well; Edward Norton succeeding in one of his first period-piece roles, Paul Giamatti bringing depth to what otherwise could've been a cardboard role, a surprising Jessica Biel holding her own among the film veterans, and perhaps the real star of the film, Rufus Sewell, turning in an absolutely electric performance complete with the piercing eyes, the volatile bellow, and the intimidating physical presence that projects much more about his character onto the screen than is expressed in his dialogue.
Burger's direction shines as well. Nothing too radical, just some really solid stuff; finding some interesting angles here and there, some smooth tracking shots, which all actually works to add to the old-world, traditional feel of the film. While some of Eisenheim's tricks look particularly unspectacular in the early going because of the CGI, this is ultimately not overly distracting, and his later work looks realistic enough.
Edward Norton's performance must also be mentioned. He starts off the film with an ever-present clever smile on his face, whether plotting with his money-hungry manager (Eddie Marsan, who by the way, is great, I knew him from Gangster No. 1), or subliminally romancing the princess to be. But after tragedy strikes, Norton's character is thrown into a world of sadness, and he succeeds in shifting gears beautifully. Now we see Norton tired, weary, bags under his eyes, shoulders sunken. It's almost as if we're now watching a completely different character. In fact, the transformation is so dramatic, Norton has almost no dialogue for at least twenty minutes in the third quarter of the film. This gives credit to not only Burger's graceful writing skills, but also Norton's vast acting talent.
Overall, despite all the positive aspects of this film, I found myself pretty much deciding on a two star rating as we neared the conclusion, that spark of a great film just seemingly not there. But when Burger reveals one of the best and biggest twists in recent film history (Shyamalan who?}, this was most definitely secured a three-star rating. Highly recommended, one of the best of the year so far. This is some true cinema magic, and it's not just an illusion.
