Woody Allen excels in three distinct arenas in the world of entertainment. First, as a young man he was as good a stand-up comedian as I have seen, but that goes all the way back to black and white TV. Secondly he writes movie scripts with a distinct and creative flair, almost all of them “out of the box” experiences. Finally, he takes those scripts and turns them into great movies, particularly if he doesn’t act in them, as lately has been the case (thank goodness!).
Magic in the Moonlight is not his best work; it lacks the power and mystique of Midnight in Paris or Blue Jasmine for example, two of his best and most recent films. But this movie, like his others, is close to flawless in technique and backdrops. Allen excels in “period pieces,” of which this is one. Set in 1928 and shot in South France and the Riviera, the scenery, color and settings, to say nothing of costuming, are exquisite.
Finally the ability to cast his films perfectly is unique, usually drawing great performances from the actors, and there is no exception here. I was (almost) stunned at the performance turned in by Emma Stone, one of my least favorite actresses, who broke through the barrier of mundane acting and roles to outshine her co-star Oscar winner Colin Firth, who is no slouch in this one either.
Firth stars as Stanley Crawford a world famous magician and illusionist, performing in Chinese make-up with the stage name of Wei Ling Soo. The movie opens with his act in a Berlin theater, and if you like that sort of thing, a couple of the illusions are pretty clever, with one of them coming back later in the film and altering the outcome of the story. Crawford is an arrogant Englishman who thinks highly of himself, and when he hears about a young woman “spiritualist” conducting magical séances in the South of France, he decides to expose her as a charlatan. After all there is no “real” magic and he has successfully exposed others masquerading as such and takes real delight in doing so.
Magic In the Moonlight
Entertainment Rating: ★★1/2
Rating: PG-13, no profanity, no sex, adult theme
Possible Oscar Nominations: None
Emma Stone plays Sophie, the young woman in question, and is superb in her role. Modest, unassuming, and discreet, she conducts her séances and extra sensory perceptions without missing a beat. Crawford enters into the picture and begins his efforts to expose her as a trickster. There are a number of great scenes between the two, many of them shot against the backdrop of the incredible scenery of South France. The mystery of Sophie’s skills deepen as the story progresses and ultimately leads to some unexpected surprises.
This is not the most satisfying script produced by Woody Allen but, like most of his work, is free of profanity and excesses, and is perfectly filmed. You could do worse.
Comments or questions email tsansom2002@gmail.com.
