“The magician heist movie ‘Now You See Me 2’ disappears with not a poof, but in a hyper-kinetic blur of hectic plot mechanics, ceaselessly nattering characters and so many ploys of misdirection that the film’s own direction got lost up someone’s sleeve long ago. “‘Horsemen reappear in London world holds its breath,’ blares a newspaper headline in this sequel, rather overestimating the world’s fascination with magicians - as well as its recall of the first movie, which was three years ago and not all that memorable even then.” Your enjoyment of the movie will depend on whether you can suspend your disbelief - and confusion - and let the magic of misdirection wash over you.” “The story doesn’t make a lick of sense, of course, but this sleight-of-hand movie is all about the smoke and mirrors, and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else, except when it’s delivering a few hollow lamentations about income inequality. Like the original, the sequel is a string of elaborate tricks that range from the merely implausible to the utterly preposterous. If that sounds like faint-ish praise, well, check the star rating.” Elsewhere, Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine are back in action, and even with Peter Deming’s highly variable digital photography, the movie’s Macau and London locales don’t hurt. Yet the design of the sequence is intricately ridiculous, and not without panache. “You don’t believe a second of what you’re seeing but … well, you don’t believe a second of what you’re seeing. “This flashy, brain-dead sequel turns 2013’s dumbest movie into 2016’s dumbest franchise.” Critically lacking is the sense of fun that characterized its predecessor.”Īlso Read: 'The Conjuring 2' Poised to Possess Weekend Box Office
The film, like the smug magicians that populate it, showboats by throwing more of everything at the screen. By contrast, ‘Now You See Me 2’ plays like its try-hard cousin: it wants so badly to win you over that the desperation is off-putting. “‘Now You See Me,’ a jazzy heist caper that became a surprise hit in the summer of 2013, had an energizing bounce to it, courtesy of French film-maker Louis Leterrier, even though it didn’t make a lick of sense. Chu‘s ‘Now You See Me 2’ suffers from the same problem as the original, and while it does have some success at backing its heroes into a corner, it ultimately becomes far too convoluted and self-satisfied to be an even marginally delightful picture.” But if you do insist, have some migraine medication handy for headache-inducing hypnosis, partly administered by not one but two Woody Harrelsons - this time he’s got a twin brother, doubling the dim-witted humor.” “Forget what trick-debunker Morgan Freeman says: You don’t have to see this to believe it (or see it at all). They’re joined by newcomers Daniel Radcliffe, Lizzy Caplan and Michael Caine. “Now You See Me 2” features returning cast members Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Morgan Freeman. “To keep the entire enterprise from floating away, cinematographer Peter Deming (‘Mulholland Drive,’ the upcoming ‘Twin Peaks’ revival) positions most of the onscreen bodies in as much detailed darkness as possible, the better to minimize the utter ridiculousness of their actions,” wrote TheWrap’s film critic Dave White in a review entitled, “‘Now You See Me 2’ Review: Daniel Radcliffe and Company Pull Fun Out of Thin Air.”Īlso Read: 'Now You See Me 2' Review: Daniel Radcliffe and Company Pull Fun Out of Thin Air
The film currently holds a score of 38 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics calling the follow-up to 2013 cinema caper “preposterous,” “excruciating,” and a “brain-dead sequel.” “Now You See Me 2” is the latest summer movie to succumb to sequelitis.