USA 2016
Opening August 25, 2016
Directed by: Jon M. Chu
Writing credits: Ed Solomon, Peter Chiarelli, Boaz Yakin, Edward Ricourt
Principal actors: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Daniel Radcliffe, Lizzy Caplan, Jay Chou, Morgan Freeman, Sanaa Lathan
A slip-up at an event in New Jersey, 1984, festers thirty years before resurfacing. Four magicians turned illusionists extraordinaire pull-off a pièce de résistance followed by, to public dismay, the Horsemen going underground. As expected, the FBI still spins its wheels chasing leads; Deputy Director (Lathan) and Agent Rhodes (Ruffalo) want them bad. Equally so, the mark (Michael Caine). Now, a year on, the Horsemen (Eisenberg, Harrelson, Franco) desire action that begets edginess. Then a new mission introduces a new magician, Lula (Caplan). Whereas, media darling and exposé specialist Thaddeus Bradley’s (Freeman) circumstances dictated a redirect; now Bradley’s retributive – “an eye for an eye.” Finally onstage again, a tech genius (Radcliffe) outmaneuvers the Horsemen performance, demanding a virtually impossible heist in exchange for their liberty. Moves and countermoves follow: “Magic is about controlling.”
The scriptwriters smartly link-up director Jon M. Chu’s Now You See Me follow-up film, combining suspense, comedy, magic and adventuresome action. The first-rate cast obviously has fun deluding audiences. Sensations are marked through Peter Deming’s camerawork, Stan Salfas’ editing, and Brian Tyler’s music. Unlike its predecessor, some tricks are let out of the bag diluting the stratagem. Since the fun is in playing the long game, Die Unfassbaren 2 assuredly delivers bewitching appeal. 129 minutes ()
The magic of this film is pure entertainment. It is a sequel but the tricks are the real story. If you are bedazzled by the magic just wait and all will be revealed. A year has passed since the Horsemen outsmarted the FBI and achieved popular cult status. The magicians, J. Daniel Atlas (Eisenberg), Merritt McKinney (Harrelson) and Jack Wilder (Franco) are joined by newcomer illusionist Lula May (Caplan). They face off against Owen Case (Ben Lamb), who has created a device to steal all your data; Case’s former partner Walter Mabry (Radcliffe) who is supposed to be dead but lives to take back the business Case stole; and, Chase McKinney (Brick Patrick) who works for Mabry but seeks twin brother revenge. Add FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Ruffalo) trying to maintain control of the mission, Mabry’s father played by Michael Caine and Rhodes’ rival portrayed by Morgan Freeman, then hang on for a wild ride as the plot gallops to a spectacular finale.