“Now You See Me: Now You Don’t,” the third film in the Now You See Me series, delivers thrilling cinematic sleight of hand.
Under the direction of Ruben Fleischer, the film earned $1.3 million domestically and $80.5 million worldwide the first weekend of release, making it a commercial success despite receiving mixed reviews.
The story unfolds as three new-generation illusionists — Charlie Vanderberg (Justice Smith), Bosco LeRoy (Dominic Sessa) and June Rouclere (Ariana Greenblatt) — are joined by a group of returning magicians known as the Four Horsemen — Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson), Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher) and Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) — all brought together by the Eye, a secret society of magicians. Atlas brings arrogance and intensity to his role as the original group’s leader, while LeRoy serves with attitude and confidence vying for the same spotlight.
In its biggest heist yet, the group works to steal the Heart Diamond from South African billionaire and criminal mastermind Veronika Vanderberg (Rosamund Pike), exposing her for laundering money for warlords, arms dealers and traffickers. Her villainous character was more superficial than threatening, however, and the film lacked the menacing antagonist it needed. Throughout the movie, an unseen caller repeatedly threatens to reveal Vanderberg’s secrets to the world, alluding to a long-buried secret connected to a boy who died 15 years ago.
After successfully stealing the diamond during a high-society event in Antwerp, the team is led to France by the Eye, where it is ambushed by the police while uncovering evidence of Vanderberg’s crimes. There, McKinney is captured and Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), a friend of the Horsemen, is fatally shot. Intended as a dramatic turning point, moments like this pass over so quickly its emotional weight doesn’t fully land. Before audiences have time to mourn, the film jumps full momentum into the next scene.
The Horsemen agree to trade the diamond in exchange for McKinney at a Formula One event in Abu Dhabi, but Vanderberg deliberately leads them into a trap. At her vault where she plans to meet her anonymous blackmailer, Charlie Vanderberg reveals himself as Veronika Vanderberg’s half-brother, seeking revenge for their mother’s death. In tears, Veronika Vanderberg deceitfully agrees to hand Charlie Vanderberg the diamond before shooting him.
Charlie Vanderberg, however, catches the bullet and the walls fall open to reveal Veronika Vanderberg was on a stage firing blanks. At this point, the film’s layered twists begin to blur as the rapid succession of reveals, secret identities and shifting alliances unfold, making the plot seem chaotic. The plot twists are underwhelming and predictable, their sheer number trying to compensate for their weakness. Veronika Vanderberg’s crimes are exposed, and it is revealed Charlie Vanderberg orchestrated the entire plan by posing as the Eye, imitating messages sent by the organization in the form of tarot cards to bring the Horsemen into his plan. The real Eye, having kept watch the whole time, officially inducts Charlie Vanderberg, LeRoy and Rouclere into the organization. The expanded Horsemen are left with the message that their work is just getting started.
The film is a fast-paced spectacle mirroring the very misdirection the movie celebrates. While the plot is dense and convoluted at times, it keeps confused audiences engaged by constantly shifting attention away from its own gaps.
Like a well-rehearsed illusion, “Now You See Me: Now You Don’t” may not hold up well under close scrutiny but captivates viewers who are willing to enjoy the trick and not search too hard for the secret.
