victoria from 5 to 7 | fashion, film, lit, more

What is cinema but one big illusion? This is the question the   Now You See Me   franchise seeks to answer as despite appearing as a facile and flat-though-thrilling blockbuster it engages with the ideas of illusion and trickery at the core of cinematic history. Firstly, I wholeheartedly agree with the general critical consensus about these films: both of these films have excellent opening acts, full of rich visuals & excellent dialogue from a stellar team of actors, but ultimately fall apart in their final acts, which are underwhelming and often confusing. Secondly, however, I think there’s something more going on  – maybe there’s a card hidden up someone’s sleeve here. Woody Harrelson has a card up his sleeve in  Now You See Me 2 The whole point of these films, I would contend, is not some lofty ideal or critical approach to something – what they are is an intensely fun exploration of what cinema can trick us into believing, a depiction of the thr...