Somewhere between “Best in Show” and “A Mighty Wind” writer/director/actor Christopher Guest changed from “mockumentary” to “documentary.” Perhaps the people in “For Your Consideration” don’t actually exist, but this movie is also not a comedy in the sense that it will make you laugh.
I am a fan of most of Guest’s movies and predisposed in favor of this one, but this was the most low-key comedy perhaps ever. Many actual documentaries are much more lighthearted. I don’t have to have Jim Carrey climbing out of the rear of a fake rhinoceros (although that was funny), but this movie was actually just bleak.
I feel that I am missing the point; but even if the film’s intentions were serious, “For Your Consideration” failed to entertain on several levels. Nothing much happened. Some actors thought they might win Academy Awards and got excited and became obnoxious. But just a little.
The volume is turned so far down on this movie that there is very little to report. It succeeds as a very realistic impression of certain types of people. Beyond that, it was almost a straight film that had no drama. Guest seems to have ridden this formula as far as it can go.
Maybe he shouldn’t let the actors improvise anymore because they had little to say in this movie. Meanwhile, the ensemble nature of the film served to dilute the interest further. It was a snooze, I am sad to report. Guests’ talented troupe of actors has become too skilled at verisimilitude for their own good. They have wandered beyond the realm of satire, into an indefinable world that is one part truth, one part fiction, no parts funny.
“For Your Consideration” is currently available to rent.
The cinematographer is the real magician in “The Illusionist,” a story of love thwarted by social class and redeemed by complicated plot twists. This darkly beautiful film looks like it was made long ago; it is a period film in every detail.
The compelling Edward Norton stars as the title character, Eisenheim the Illusionist, a poor man who pulled himself up to fame and fortune with his amazing skills as a magician. While playing packed houses in Vienna, Eisenheim finds himself face to face with his childhood love, a beautiful duchess who’s slated to wed the smarmy Crowned Prince, a violent drinker with a shady past and dark designs on his father’s throne.
Eisenheim’s illusions are elegantly realized on screen; in our digital age, we aren’t exactly wowed by how he did them, but the movie still manages to recreate the awe his audiences felt. His biggest trick is wooing Jessica Biel, and their attempts to extricate her from her unsavory fiancé launch this great looking movie into a thrilling mystery.
Paul Giamatti must fight his admiration for Eisenheim to reluctantly pursue him at the behest of the sinister prince. I don’t want to give too much away, as this is a genuine mystery story, not just a cinematic parlor trick.
Finally, a movie that people who like carefully created period movies and people who like surprising plot twists can agree upon, “The Illusionist” is smart, interesting and pretty. The qualities you look for on Match.com are now available in cinematic format. With eye-candy like Jessica Biel, turning in a respectable performance, and Edward Norton bringing his usual sleepy-eyed seriousness to his part, you could certainly do worse.
“The Illusionist” is currently available to rent.
Contact Asia Frey at afrey@lagniappemobile.com.
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