Neil Burger'sThe Illusionist had some fantastic visuals, a great atmosphere (which could be down to cinematographer
Dick Pope) and an impressive cast but it ultimately failed because of it's flimsy script in the second and third act. Still he showed enough talent for me to take notice of his career. His next film is set to be
The Return, which just goes to show how much
the Sarah Michelle Gellar horror flick of late last year fluttered by without anyone caring at all. It's so far under the radar, they aren't even bothered about a name clash. Cast in The Return are
Rachel McAdams,
Tim Robbins and
Michael Pena and the plot is described as being a "
story that follows three soldiers returning from Iraq who become companions on an unexpected road trip across the U.S". An interesting tidbit from
Variety, is that Burger's The Illusionist impressed the people over at Disney so much, that he was offered the job of helming
Prince Caspian, but he turned it down so we could make this movie which he co-penned with
Dick Wittenborn. Great cast and I agree with Disney, this Burger guy could be someone to watch over the next few years. The Illusionist has only just managed to get a U.K. release, and it's worth seeing but ultimately it's
The Prestige-lite. If you haven't seen The Prestige, you really should pick it up later this month.... you won't regret it. source -
coming soon,
variety