now you see me now you don’t

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Genre: thriller, mystery, crime 

Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

The original Four Horsemen reunite with a new generation of illusionists to take on powerful diamond heiress Veronika Vanderberg, who leads a criminal empire built on money laundering and trafficking. The new and old magicians must overcome their differences to work together on their most ambitious heist yet.

As a pre-existing lover of this franchise, I found this addition to such a beloved film franchise to be satisfactory.  It held up against the other in the series as well as setting its own mark and setting up for future films and stories to be told. And, although this film may not be gunning for any majorly acclaimed awards, it has already wormed its way into peoples hearts, and that is award enough. 

Everything about this film is exactly what the franchise is about; it's tense, emotional and above all else wholesome, with found family taking precedence above all else, which really hit home because it shows that finding a place where you belong is possible, and I think that is something that is so important, especially in this day and age. 

The new additions to the cast in the likes of Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblatt and Justice Smith, add a breath of fresh air to an already stacked cast, adding a touch of relatability for the newer and younger generation and reaching new audiences that otherwise may not have bee interested in the film beforehand, creating new beloved characters for audiences to love and grow attached to, being able to see themselves in those characters to add a new sense of reality to the film. 

The returning cast, Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Lizzy Caplin honour their characters from the previous movies and somehow still manage to build on their character and add something new to them the audiences wouldn't have seen yet, all while staying true to the characters' development previously established, acting as though they’d never left. Seeing them all come together on the big screen again brought a sense of joy no words can describe. 

The cameos dotted throughout the movie and certainly towards the end, with the return of Mark Ruffalos character Dylan, solidifies that sense of nostalgia. Besides, it wouldnt be a now you see me movie without them. 

This has been one of my most anticipated releases this year, and it lived up to everything i expected it to be and more. If you get a chance to see this film, i suggest you take it because there truly isnt another film like it out there.