Don Reviews "Now You See Me: Now You Don't"

I will be the first to admit it: when I watch any form of illusionist, I am the person who tries to figure out the secrets behind the tricks when I really should be just sitting back and enjoying the show.  I actually was able to see Siegfreid and Roy in Las Vegas a number of years ago and trying to figure everything out drove me nuts.  I can only imagine what it is like for people that have that same “thing” to watch the Now You See Me films, trying to beat the movie to walking you through the illusions.  And now, we have a third film in that series.

Now You See Me: Now You Don’t is directed by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland) and has the established roles played by Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, and Isla Fisher while adding Rosamund Pike, Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa, and Ariana Greenblatt to the cast.  This installment takes roughly ten years after the previous one after The Four Horsemen have disbanded and been living separate lives.  After being contacted once again by “The Eye” to stop a new villain named Veronika Vanderberg (Pike) illegal activities, they are paired up with a new generation of magicians to take her and her family’s company down.

The film has the glitz and glamor from around the world, just like the other films and keeps its mood intact.  Considering all three films have had a different director, I will give it kudos for that alone.  The acting is fine, with the same level of performance from the main cast, and I did enjoy adding the new characters played by Smith, Greenblatt, and Sessa to bring a new dynamic to the team.

From a script standpoint, this is a basic re-hash of the films that came before it with a different villain.  Overall, there is nothing new or unique to this film from the others besides that and the new cast members: The Four Horsemen taking on an evil rich person, and they use their magic to get the better of the villain with the third act “reveal” of how they pulled the illusions off.  It runs about two hours long and did seem a little.  Even with the amount of visual pizzaz, it does not make up for the lack of a new or original plot and it falls flat.  There is talk that a fourth film in development, and if it is a rehash like this film, please kill the trick.  All of that said, I will recommend Now You See Me: Now You Don’t film to be seen on a home pay service like HBO.