Now You See Me 2

Oh, how Hollywood does love its sequels! It took some major slight of hand to pull this one off, but after a marginally successful performance at the box office "Now You See Me 2" was greenlit, and the heist movie was reborn. Most of the original players are back including Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Dave Franco and Woody Harrelson. Isla Fisher sat out this installment and is replaced by new cast mate Lizzy Caplan. Some additional clever casting provided by "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe makes for an interesting mix, but the lack of chemistry dims the illusion.

The story revolves around the Four Horsemen, a group of self-proclaimed heroes who use "magic" and illusions to pull off intricate crimes against corrupt agencies. The Horsemen are legendary, and after outwitting the FBI in the first film, they now find themselves on the side of the angels working alongside Mark Ruffalo's FBI agent. Their mission is to expose a technological menace that is stealing information and getting its mitts onto some highly classified data, but when a tech prodigy (Radcliffe) interferes with the plot, the Horsemen are locked into clearing their names before the feds catch up to them.

The globetrotting aspect of the film and an uncanny performance as his own "evil twin" from Woody Harrelson magnify the scope of "NYSM2," and the script is at times quite smart, but the hammy moments among the rest of the cast doesn't help to propel their likability to a level that is believable. The film excels at illustrating its magical efforts, but in our world of CGI effects it's really a challenge to make us believe in magic of this kind, even in this film which is co-produced by David Copperfield, one of the world's greatest illusionist.

Director Jon M. Chu does his best to skillfully move the story at a rollercoaster pace, especially moving the moments crafted in illusion in a way that entice the spectacle. The commentary to the film pulls back the curtain and reveals many of the movie's biggest tricks. Additional special features on the Blu-ray include a look at the ensemble cast and a glimpse at how the filmmakers brought the magic (on screen) to life. "You Can't Look Away" the long form featurette takes the audience back into the world of the Horsemen.

"Now You See Me 2"
available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD
$24.99
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