'Now You See Me 2' Review

Back in 2013, audiences were introduced to 'Now You See Me' which gained mixed responses. 3 years later 'The Horseman' are back to try and amaze audiences with their amazing magic skills and to hopefully build on the good things created from the first and be a universal success. Unfortunately, not even magic was able to save this film entirely.

After returning from their hiatus, The Horseman (Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg and Dave Franco) accompanied by new member Lula (Lizzy Caplan) have to flee a stage show as it goes all wrong. They are exposed as is FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) and the try to escape but to unfamiliar territory. They end up in Macau, China where they are brought to the thought to be dead Walter Mabry (Daniel Radcliffe) who forces them to steal a computer chip, that will grant him access to every computer in the world. 

The film really holds itself on the magic aspects of the film and how it fools you a lot. However I didn't really feel amazed at this film at all with the magic aspects especially in the longer tricks. The film takes out big chunks and then adds them in much later to try and wow you but it really didn't strike me as that impressive. There are twists for days in this film as it keeps changing everything that you do start to get fed up with it. You can't really trust anything you see in this film as it will probably turn out to be false just outta nowhere.

For the magic tricks themselves, it is a very mixed bag. Some of the tricks are very cool and entertaining which is what the audience will like to see. However at some points, they aren't as good. Take the heist scene in particular. In this scene there is a whole load of things happening which leads to big contrasts in quality. Some of them are really smart and clever which work really well. Others are painfully obvious that something is happening and should've been caught red handed but weren't just to allow the story to carry on. Once you see that even the most blatant proof, the stakes are lifted as surely if that didn't get them caught, nothing will. However I would be lying if I said that some of the stuff going on wasn't cool to watch and will definitely bring some enjoyment. 

Something that is done very well within these films are the performances. Mark Ruffalo is excellent once again and is one of the most interesting characters who has to deal with a lot as well as looking over the Horseman. The other standout I feel is Jesse Eisenberg who does very well as his arrogant character Daniel Atlas which he pulls off very well. Lizzy Caplan is in to replace Isla Fisher and she does bring a fresh character to the film as she is very lively and cheeky which is a good contrast compared to the others. She did well to replace Fisher's character and was entertaining throughout the film. The cast overall does a very good job as they keep the film entertaining as they bicker and challenge each other a lot. 

However a very low point of the film comes in the form of Woody Harrelson. He plays his normal character Merrit McKinney which he does well. Unfortunately in the sequel, he's doing double duty as his twin brother Chase. One of the most annoying characters I have seen this year who annoyed me oh so much throughout the film and who never got any better or enjoyable as the film progressed. 

The finale of this film as well is very underwhelming. They look to be setting up a huge final across London with tricks that will amaze. Apart from Atlas' trick the other acts were not that impressive considering how out of this world the movie wants you to think the tricks are. Due to it not being that impressive, it certainly does drag on and you just want it to move on. 

Final Verdict =

Not a terrible movie, but it's style over substance hinders it a lot. Some good performances make the film enjoyable but not enough to completely save the film. 

So have you seen 'Now You See Me 2'? If so what did you think of it? I hope this review was useful for if you were planning on seeing the movie. Once again, thank you for reading my review, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor

Spotlight Review

Spotlight was one of the films I was most looking forward to this Oscar season. A great cast telling the story of a true and very serious event. Nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars alongside Mark Ruffalo and Rachel McAdams being nominated for their supporting roles. But would the film be worthy of being in the spotlight as it is right now?

Spotlight stars Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber and Stanley Tucci. It is the telling of a Boston newspaper team investigating allegations about priest John Geoghan who had been accused of molesting more than 80 children. The investigation leads them to discover more stories to this and unveil a truly horrific story. They soon discover that there is decades worth of hidden crimes all similar to Geoghans as they work to expose the abusers and the Catholic church. To do so they face many obstacles such as lawyers, getting the stories from victims and also hidden documents showing proof of the disgusting acts done by these members of the Catholic church. 

The Spotlight team

This film is 100% worth seeing. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Being from Scotland, I had small knowledge of these events but never to these extents. People need to see this film to know the full extent of what happened by these horrible people. Although it takes place in one city it gives a massive impact on what happened. A very serious subject matter and the film does an absolutely fantastic job at showing this. But not to the extent that it becomes tedious, the film keeps you very interested at all moments. This film deserves all the praise that it is getting and it's Best Picture nomination is so well deserved. In fact it is my pick to scoop up the award, I feel it is that good. It is a very well put together film and is definitely worth seeing as soon as possible.

The performances in Spotlight are great. Mark Ruffalo has won my pick for Best Supporting Actor in the Oscars due to the performance. He was truly magnificent in this role and I'm not just talking about his great talent of holding a phone between his shoulder and ear. He produced a fantastic performance which I feel is Oscar worthy. The scene when it has all been discovered and he loses his cool is just amazing. Rachel McAdams was the only other performance nominated for an Oscar which was also well deserved. Her character was much more comforting and focussed on the victims to get them to open up about these attacks.  She played her role fantastically and in my book, was worthy of the nomination she received.

Mark Ruffalo with an Oscar worthy performance

Michael Keaton once again was very good. It looks as if we're going to get fantastic movies from him each year now which is great following up from Birdman. Liev Schrieber also produced a solid performance although he didn't appear in the film as much as the other characters did or as much as I hoped he would. Performances from the likes of Stanley Tucci, Brian D'Arcy and John Slattery were also very good. I also feel a credit to Neal Huff who played Phil Saviano who did a great job at playing a victim who seemed slightly unhinged and unsure whether to be trusted as a legitimate source. Overall the performances in Spotlight work incredibly well and are very good all around.

This movie is indeed quite frightening due to the subject matter. Over 80 accounts of molestation happening in one city is so incredibly scaring. You might think that it's only just the one city but the film then goes to prove that it is a worldwide thing and not just specifically Boston. I don't think I've ever felt a film hit me harder than at the end of the film where a list of all of the cities affected by these crimes were put on screen. Once I seen the city that I was watching the film in, it really hit me and set me back. As Mark Ruffalo's character says it in the film, it could've been anyone. That to me is terrifying as it really could of happened to anyone in dozens of countries. There is also a very haunting part in this film where we see the complete innocence of children in a church singing Christmas carols unaware to the danger that they may of possibly been in whilst being overlooked by these priests.

McAdams, Keaton and Ruffalo were all great.

I do feel that at the start of the film it was a bit slow, it did seem to take a bit of time for it to finally kick in and get rolling. I also feel that Liev Schreiber was missing for quite a bit of the film considering it was his character who pushed for this case to be put forward. I found this strange as I thought he'd have taken more of an interest and given a bit more help in this case. Overall I don't have many complaints!

Final verdict: Spotlight = A
A phenomenal film telling a very scary, true event, I highly recommend seeing this film as it is spectacular. I really hope this film does well at the Oscars as it thoroughly deserves to do so.
A must see!

So have you seen Spotlight? If so what did you think of it? If you haven't I hope this review has encouraged you to now go and see it. Once again thank you very much for reading, it is much appreciated!

By Angus McGregor