How did this movie become such a big hit at the box office? It's far from horrible, but it definitely doesn't warrant the success that it got. There are magic tricks here, but I didn't feel any of it. Magic should not have such a dull aura surrounding it. Heck. Even the Incredible Burt Wonderstone was more entertaining than this movie. This movie is propelled by such an amazing cast, that one might be willing to overlook the lack of substance. I'm not one of those people. We don't know all that much about The Four Horsemen. We don't know what makes them tick, or what flaws they have. I'm more than capable of ignoring stuff like this, but it was really needed in this movie. It can throw all the flash it wants at me and it tries to do just that, but I didn't buy into it. I get the feeling they went out of there way to show the impossible instead of focusing on engaging their audience like they should have. It's just way too cute for its own good. You can only throw so many fancy escapes at me before I get bored. Am I being too harsh with it? Maybe, but with this amount of talent it should be much better than it is, and there is no excuse for it.

My biggest gripe in this movie is the huge twist ending. It angered me in a big way. I actually yelled "OH, COME ON!" out loud as soon as they revealed it. Not only does it lack logic, but it didn't make much sense. I do like twist endings. They often knock me on my ass, but this one was just needless. Other people may feel differently, but I was already unimpressed with this film. The twist ending made it worse. Jesse Eisenberg is simply OK. He's proved to be very talented in the past, but he came across as arrogant with no depth here. It's not a great performance. Mark Ruffalo delivers a very good performance. His frustration is deeply felt, and he probably gave the best performance in this movie in my opinion. Woody Harrelson is always solid no matter what he's in, but he's also a victim of circumstance. He lacks depth like the others do. Isla Fisher is sassy and great to look at, but that's about it. Dave Franco is the younger brother of James Franco, and shows plenty of potential. Mélanie Laurent has her moments, and had decent chemistry with Ruffalo as his partner. Morgan Freeman & Michael Caine add class to the proceedings, but I just wish they were in a better movie. Freeman's part is a big bigger, whilst Caine's is rather inconsequential for the most part.

Final Thoughts: I didn't hate this movie, but I was so disappointed with it. It's typical Hollywood. After I heard what a hit it was with audiences, I was actually excited to watch it. The lack of substance is too much to ignore. A sequel has been green-lit. I just hope they put a little more effort into the sequel than they did with this one.

5.2/10