There is something entrancing about The Illusionist, but something slightly infuriating, as well, because it insists on tacking on a last-minute coda that explains (sort of) everything that we didn't see originally, essentially revealing the proverbial card up the sleeve. To be fair, the ending works in its own way, but it's also somewhat disappointing because it robs the film of its more effective supernatural suggestiveness. “Nothing is what it seems,” goes the film's tagline, but it eventually shows that everything can be explained.

The story takes place in turn-of-the-century Vienna, which was a hotbed of both mystery (illusionists were often followed like religious leaders) and science (this was, after all, the time and place that gave birth to Sigmund Freud). Edward Norton stars as a popular illusionist named Eisenheim, who appears to be able to slow down time, cause an orange tree to grow rapidly from a pot, and produce a painting of the Emperor without a paintbrush ever touching the canvas. The story is narrated by Chief Inspector Uhl (Paul Giamatti), an amateur magician who is fascinated by Eisenheim's feats, yet is put in the uncomfortable position of having to shut him down when he insults the boorish Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell).

There is more, though. Leopold is engaged to marry Sophie (Jessica Biel), a duchess from a powerful family whom Eisenheim knew when they were adolescents. In fact, they tried to run away together, but were forcibly separated because she came from an upper-class clan and he was the son of a poor cabinetmaker. When they are reunited, their disrupted adolescent affections are reignited even though Leopold will never allow Sophie to leave him. Thus is born a dangerous love triangle, with Uhl, himself the son of a butcher with clear aspirations to class mobility, caught in the middle and forced to do what he knows is wrong. Even though Eisenheim is the film's protagonist, Uhl is its moral conscience, and no one conveys inner turmoil better than Paul Giamatti.

Despite some of its narrative shortcomings, The Illusionist is never anything less than gorgeous to behold. The cinematography by Dick Pope (a favorite of British auteur Mike Leigh) is delicate and nearly translucent at times, conveying a slightly otherworldly sense that always keeps the film's rational/spiritual dichotomy in sharp focus. When Eisenheim begins to summon spirits from the dead, it is in no way clear whether it is a con or the real deal; his audience eats it up, but others are doubtful.

This leads to some potential problems in the third act, as Uhl begins to switch allegiance from Leopold to Eisenheim in his investigation of a serious misdeed. Leopold insists that it is all just one of Eisenheim's tricks, but Norton conveys such pain and anguish as the tortured illusionist that we never for a moment doubt his sincerity, even as he remains enigmatic as to his supernatural abilities. The film's key line of dialogue comes from Uhl when he suggests that there can be truth even in a trick. This works to both reify the art of the illusion and to justify its Eisenheim's ultimate master plan, which some may have a hard time swallowing once it's revealed in all its details.

Copyright ©2007 James Kendrick

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