Synopsis:
In a world where nothing is as it appears, an illusionist and a police inspector face off in a challenge of wills that attempts to determine where reality ends and magic begins...all the while...
In a world where nothing is as it appears, an illusionist and a police inspector face off in a challenge of wills that attempts to determine where reality ends and magic begins...all the while blurring the line between power and corruption, love and devotion, vigilance and mania and ultimately, life and death.
A supernatural mystery that combines romance, politics and magic, The Illusionist is the latest film from the producers of the Oscar® winners Crash and Sideways. The film stars Academy Award® nominees Edward Norton (Fight Club, American History X) and Paul Giamatti (Cinderella Man, Sideways) as two men pitted against each other in a battle of wits. Norton plays a mysterious stage magician, Eisenheim, who bends nature's laws to his will in front of awestruck crowds. Giamatti co-stars as Vienna's shrewd Chief Inspector Uhl, a man committed to uphold the law and for whom magic holds no place in his ordered world. Jessica Biel (Elizabethtown) shares the screen as the beautiful and enigmatic Sophie von Teschen, who finds her future inexorably altered when she encounters the man called Eisenheim, and Eisenheim comes dangerously close to unlocking the dark secret of the monarchy that she holds.
When Eisenheim begins to perform his astounding illusions in Vienna, word quickly spreads of his otherworldly powers...even reaching the ears of one of Europe's most powerful and pragmatic men, Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell, Dark City). Certain that the illusionist is nothing more than an accomplished fraud, Leopold attends one of Eisenheim's shows, convinced that he can debunk him during the performance. But when the Prince's beautiful fiancé and companion, Sophie von Teschen, assists the magician onstage, Eisenheim and Sophie recognize each other from their childhoods-and a dormant love affair is rekindled. With Eisenheim and Leopold vying for Sophie's affection, it quickly becomes apparent that both will go to any length to claim and keep her love.
As the clandestine romance continues, Uhl is charged by Leopold to intensify his efforts to expose Eisenheim, even while the magician gains a devoted and vocal public following. With Uhl doggedly searching for the reasons and the man behind the trickery, Eisenheim prepares to execute his greatest illusion yet.
The Yari Film Group presents a Michael London/Koppelman Levien Production, In Association with Contagious Pictures, of A Film by Neil Burger: The Illusionist. The film is written and directed by Neil Burger-who received acclaim and award recognition for his debut feature, 2002's Interview with the Assassin-and is based on Pulitzer Prize-winning author Steven Millhauser's short story "Eisenheim the Illusionist." It stars Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel and Rufus Sewell.
The Illusionist is produced by Michael London (Sideways), Brian Koppelman (Interview with the Assassin), David Levien (Interview with the Assassin) and Bob Yari (Crash), and features top-notch production values from a team of superlative artisans, including: director of photography Dick Pope BSC (Topsy-Turvy); editor Naomi Geraghty (Hotel Rwanda); production designer Ondrej Nekvasil (Emmy winner for TV's Anne Frank: The Whole Story); costume designer Ngila Dickson (Oscar®-winner for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King); and composer Philip Glass (Academy Award®-nominated for The Hours). Casting is by Deborah Aquila ASC, Tricia Wood ASC and Nina Gold. The executive producer is Jane Garnett, with Tom Karnowski, Matthew Stillman and David Minkowski serving as co-producers.
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