I just don't get these negative reviews. The special effects aren't bad. The story is decent. The acting is fine (even if Antonia Banderas is in a glorified cameo role that he just sleepwalks through just waiting for the paycheck).
And more importantly, it stays relatively grounded with the magical abilities. There isn't really any of that, "We're screwed until Mr. So-And-So decides to pull this deus-ex-machina ability out of his bum to save everyone." As in it's more of an Ocean's 11 than an Ocean's 12.
It starts off relatively grounded, with this guy who knows sleight of hand, how to read people, and how to count cards, trying to pull off a big win/con, only for it all to backfire horribly when he gets duped by a man who knows real magic. So now that he knows real magic users exist, he naturally goes searching for real magicians, eventually assembles a crew, and proceeds to pull off a casino heist using their abilities.
I love that the assembled team doesn't start off that well. These are magicians who have powers, but have never utilized them in such a deliberate manner, so they start off terrible when it comes to manipulating dice rolls, messing with slot machines, telepathic communication, etc. Even by the end, they aren't exactly masters of the craft, just amateurs who have improved to about intermediate level, capable of working as a team.
Of course, the filmmakers decide to throw in some Inception-inspired dream stuff during the finale more-or-less for the hell of it (and in all fairness, it's more dream-like than what Inception did). Some of the rules (for magic and inception-world) are a little wonky and head-scratching, even if the plot twist on how they get out of this dead-end trap is predictable (that they would get out of it wasn't the issue, it's the how they get out of it is a bit wonky; there's setup for it, but it's still a bit strange). But it's not insulting to the intelligence, especially compared to other heist films I've seen.
This isn't a masterpiece, but it is a solid B-movie. The only problem I had with it was this waste-of-time epilogue that seems to setup for a sequel that's never coming. That, and the over-dubbing took some getting used to. But all in all, I had fun with this. It entertained me, and that's all I wanted out of this film.
And more importantly, it stays relatively grounded with the magical abilities. There isn't really any of that, "We're screwed until Mr. So-And-So decides to pull this deus-ex-machina ability out of his bum to save everyone." As in it's more of an Ocean's 11 than an Ocean's 12.
It starts off relatively grounded, with this guy who knows sleight of hand, how to read people, and how to count cards, trying to pull off a big win/con, only for it all to backfire horribly when he gets duped by a man who knows real magic. So now that he knows real magic users exist, he naturally goes searching for real magicians, eventually assembles a crew, and proceeds to pull off a casino heist using their abilities.
I love that the assembled team doesn't start off that well. These are magicians who have powers, but have never utilized them in such a deliberate manner, so they start off terrible when it comes to manipulating dice rolls, messing with slot machines, telepathic communication, etc. Even by the end, they aren't exactly masters of the craft, just amateurs who have improved to about intermediate level, capable of working as a team.
Of course, the filmmakers decide to throw in some Inception-inspired dream stuff during the finale more-or-less for the hell of it (and in all fairness, it's more dream-like than what Inception did). Some of the rules (for magic and inception-world) are a little wonky and head-scratching, even if the plot twist on how they get out of this dead-end trap is predictable (that they would get out of it wasn't the issue, it's the how they get out of it is a bit wonky; there's setup for it, but it's still a bit strange). But it's not insulting to the intelligence, especially compared to other heist films I've seen.
This isn't a masterpiece, but it is a solid B-movie. The only problem I had with it was this waste-of-time epilogue that seems to setup for a sequel that's never coming. That, and the over-dubbing took some getting used to. But all in all, I had fun with this. It entertained me, and that's all I wanted out of this film.