The Illusionist (2006)

Director:

Neil Burger

Writers (WGA):

Neil Burger (screenplay)
Steven Millhauser (short story "Eisenheim the Illusionist")

Release Date:

1 September 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Nothing is what it seems

Plot:

In turn-of-the-century Vienna, a magician uses his abilities to secure the love of a woman far above his social standing.

Plot Keywords:

Love | Magician | Crown Prince | Magic | Police Surveillance

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 5 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Edward Norton	...	Eisenheim
Paul Giamatti	...	Inspector Uhl
Jessica Biel	...	Sophie
Rufus Sewell	...	Crown Prince Leopold
Eddie Marsan	...	Josef Fischer (as Edward Marsan)
Jake Wood	...	Jurka
Tom Fisher	...	Willigut
Aaron Johnson	...	Young Eisenheim
Eleanor Tomlinson	...	Young Sophie
Karl Johnson	...	Doctor / Old Man
Vincent Franklin	...	Loschek
Nicholas Blane	...	Herr Doebler
Philip McGough	...	Dr. Hofzinser
Erich Redman	...	Count Rainer
Michael Carter	...	Von Thurnburg

Also Known As:

El ilusionista (Argentina) (Mexico) (Spain) [es]
L'illusionniste (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
O Ilusionista (Brazil) (Portugal) [pt]
Иллюзионист (Russia) [ru]
Illusionisten (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Illusionisten (Denmark) [da]
Iluzionista (Serbia) [sr]
Iluzjonista (Poland) [pl]
L'illusionista (Italy) [it]
O magos Eisenheim (Greece) [el]
Sihirbaz (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Silmänkääntäjä (Finland) [fi]
The Illusionist (France) (festival title) [fr]
The Illusionist - Nichts ist wie es scheint (Germany) (DVD title) [de]

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexuality and violence.

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

Czech Republic | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Netherlands:12 | Finland:K-11 | Argentina:Atp | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Brazil:14 | Ireland:12A | UK:PG | France:U | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Canada:G (Quebec) | South Korea:15 | Australia:M | Norway:11 | Denmark:11 | Sweden:7

Filming Locations:

Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic

Company:

Bull's Eye Entertainment

Trivia:

Although the story is fictional, some of the details are based on the life of Austrian Crown Prince Rudolf, only son of Emperor Franz Josef. The painting of the emperor which Eisenheim creates is an actual portrait of Franz Josef. The bodies of Rudolf and his mistress, the Baroness Mary Vetsera, were found at his hunting lodge Mayerling on January 30, 1889 in what is now known as the "Mayerling Incident". This was initially covered up by the Imperial Family, creating controversy and mystery.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At the train station, the green trains have large, white, bold lettering in Helvetica, a font invented in 1957.

Quotes:

Crown Prince Leopold: You're late.
Chief Inspector Uhl: My apologies, your Highness. I was attending to loose ends of the case.
Crown Prince Leopold: Are there still loose ends?
Chief Inspector Uhl: Very few.
Crown Prince Leopold: Did he do it again?
[Uhl nods]
Crown Prince Leopold: How does he do it?
Chief Inspector Uhl: I'm afraid I still don't know.
Crown Prince Leopold: Did you ask him?
Chief Inspector Uhl: He's not talking at this point.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 79th Annual Academy Awards (2007) (TV)

Like the Moody Blues song asks--"real or just an illusion?"

Kind of a strange movie but very original and entertaining! It was a Gothic-romance period-piece drama-mystery, and quirky characters and a bizarre--or at least unusual--plot held my interest.

Edward Norton's character plays an inscrutable but romantic master illusionist. But is he just a master illusionist or has he developed powers to effect the creepy conjuring of those who have passed on? (Regardless, the guy is so easy on the eyes.)

Jessica Biel is beautiful and good in her role but I couldn't help thinking, "Hey, Jessica, Scarlett Johanssen called. She wants her lips back."

Paul Giamatti bothered me just a tad at first because he spoke in a near-whisper and had a scruffy beard so you couldn't read his lips. He got louder and his character developed pretty darned well, thank goodness. Actually, he was fantastic (so what else is new?).

The makers of this movie did the same thing the makers of Little Miss Sunshine did--made me want to see the film twice, but for different reasons: LMS because the first time I saw it, I laughed so hard I cried, and I really needed a laugh again (and got it); The Illusionist because I was like the audience for the title character's shows the first time I saw it--just kind of naive and awed and staring up at the action with my mouth hanging open. So I'll have to see it again and pay attention. Kind of like when my daughter told me to go see The Sixth Sense again and pay attention to what Bruce Willis's character was wearing. (Plot-wise, this is unrelated, folks--just a movie watcher's analogy.)

At first, the old-fashioned circle wipes seemed a little distracting, but in retrospect, they were part of the excellent movie-making decisions that created the illusion of time and place in this film. A really good story with really good art direction and really good actors, costumes and settings. Definitely worth a go-see--or two!