Movie Report: "The Illusionist"

OK, so I'm going to go to some sort of pop culture hell for seeing another movie before I see "Snakes on a Plane." I've accepted this.

Because really, can you go wrong with Rufus Sewell and Edward Norton in the same movie? Besides the eye candy factor, you've got two excellent actors who have great taste in films. Sewell's worst part ever was in the second "Zorro" flick, and that was still pretty good turn-your-brain-off action.

The sweetie and I are in a "Rippers" game atm that is set in Victorian-era Budapest. (He's the GM, I'm playing in it.) Unfortunately, there is pretty much no setting info for the era, and we've been having to create it. As you might imagine, "Austrian-Hungarian nobility of the 1870s" isn't a hugely popular topic on the Web. Maybe Stephen Colbert should mention it on his show.

John was feeling kind of down a few weeks ago, couldn't get his brain around what to do, and I tracked down a reference to "Illusionist." Going to see a movie set in the period you're working with is a great way to get your creative thing going.

The movie itself? Setting and theme were great, the costumes were lovely. With my newfound interest in Victorian costuming, I am so lusting after the outfit Sophie wore to the prince's hunting lodge.

The plot? Well, I had the "big twist" pegged less than halfway through the movie, and turns out I was right. But there's a freeing element in that -- I could watch the rest of the movie unfold and enjoy the story and the performances without trying to figure it out.

There was a preview for "The Prestige" before the show started -- looks like turn of the century magicians are the new hotness.