Movie Review: "Now You See Me 2"

Before I went to the advanced screening of Now You See Me 2 I got to read my movie review for its successor. The first "Now You See Me" flick came out in 2013 and became a success grossing over $300 million worldwide. The film also bagged People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie Thriller. 

In my review back in 2013, I wrote about how the film reminded me of three other films: "Ocean's Eleven", "The Prestige" and "The Italian Job" it was the first of its own kind and it really amazed audiences, myself included and with the ending as it was, "The Four Horseman" being part of the mysterious "The Eye" it was really a matter of wanting to find out what happened to our favorite magicians. 

The film opens with a dramatic flashback as we see the heartbreak a young Dylan Rhodes goes through when his father dies in an attempt to escape a safe that is thrown in a river. We recall that this was the driving force which led to the inception of the plot of the first film. It was a good starting point so we can understand the ghosts that haunt Dylan. 

I enjoyed the sequence which showed the events of the first film, sort of a "previously on..." it's hard to describe-you'd have to see it for yourself but it was pretty cool. 

It's been a year after the events of the first film, Thaddeaus Bradley (Morgan Freeman) is in prison, Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) is a double agent as he continually works the Four Horseman case as his FBI agent persona but who is also secretly the leader of the Horsemen.      

The Eye has asked the Horseman to "lay low" ever since their last act, something Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg) is not so happy about. Henley (Isla Fischer) is said to have left the group, it reality the actress had to drop out of the sequel due to her pregnancy. 

The Horseman are asked to come out in hiding in order to divulge the unethical practice of a tech magnate, the group welcome Lula, (Lizzy Caplan) a "decapitator" to the team. I love Lula, I think the audiences did too. She was adorable and hilarious and her blooming romance with Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) was so much believable rather than the scorned love between Atlas and Henley. 

The tables are quickly turned on the Horseman as they find themselves in a strange land and taking orders from a spoiled brat and sociopath in Daniel Radcliffe's Walter Marby. A role, I enjoyed seeing him in. I was looking forward to seeing the actor in the film and I must say that I was not disappointed.  

I was also excited to see Jay Chou in another Hollywood film. I've been a fan of the Taiwanese singer since I was in High School. He has been known to be a fan of magic, which has also been a theme in his music, he also has a bit of that sleight of hand :) 

For those of you who don't know him, he played Kato alongside Seth Rogen in "The Green Hornet". He also played Prince Zhai in Zhang Yimou's "The Curse of the Golden Flower". It's obvious that I'm a fan isn't it? :) He's also on Spotify. I recommend his first five albums:

Jay (2000), Fantasy (2001), The Eight Dimensions (2002), Ye Hui Mei (2003) and Common Orange Jasmine (2004).   

SPOILER ALERT 

I wasn't too thrilled about Woody Harrelson playing a twin in the movie, I mean Harrelson is without a doubt an incredible actor who, even seeing him play a crazier version of Merritt McKinney is hilarious, a twin being the only one to call McKinney's bluf is kind of meehhh for me. 

I also wished they didn't reveal their good tricks in the trailer, Like of Atlas and the rain. That was a really cool trick but since it was already in the trailer, it didn't have that wow factor for me anymore. 

7 out of 10 Stars, Now You See Me 2 has the same magic and how-they-done-it thrills as the first, unfortunately like the magic of the first kiss, which can no longer be repeated, you find yourself looking for clues as to how the tricks are done are will be done. You already know what to expect so that takes the magic out of it. You'll still definitely enjoy it for sure, with some hand biting (I was literally biting my hand) suspense and jaw dropping sequences.There was more comedy injected in the sequel so that's a plus too. 

Now You See Me 2 is now showing in Cinemas from Pioneer Films!