It’s like “Ocean’s Eleven” without the high-wattage movie stars, or “Fast and Furious” without the big-time action sequences. So what’s the appeal of the “Now You See Me” franchise?
Part of it is the way the audience is invited to out-guess the sleight-of-hand on display. Part of it is the camaraderie projected by the quirky professionals in the ensemble.
As it turns out, that’s just about enough to pull off the sequel. “Now You See Me: 2” trips along lightly, bringing the plotline of the first movie full circle and maintaining a jokey spirit throughout.
The “four horsemen” of the first film, magicians who work on a global scale, return — well, three of them, anyway. Daniel (Jesse Eisenberg) is a nervy David Blaine type, Merritt (Woody Harrelson) a master of hypnosis, and Jack (Dave Franco) is extremely talented with cards.
Isla Fisher played one of the horsemen in the first film, but she’s apparently fallen through a trap door somewhere. Taking her spot is Lula, played by the lively Lizzy Caplan (from “Masters of Sex”).
I’m not going to claim I followed the plot, but it generally has to do with FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) having his true identity exposed, and the recently jailed magic debunker Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman) hatching a plan from prison.
Daniel Radcliffe pops up as a billionaire who brings the horsemen to Macao as part of an elaborate scheme of his own. In these movies, there are no simple schemes, only elaborate schemes, and everybody’s got one.
Director John M. Chu (“G.I. Joe: Retaliation”) and writer Ed Solomon never let any of the schemes weigh down the movie. If anybody took this seriously, the film would be doomed, but the jokes keep coming and the actors are content to play it loose.
Harrelson — as is often the case — seems to be having the most fun, while Caplan is so high-energy you’d think she was still auditioning for the job. Radcliffe looks like he’s prepping for a James Bond villain, which would not be a terrible idea.
Nothing that happens in the last 30 minutes of “Now You See Me 2” is plausible, but this hardly seems relevant. If you’ve come this far, you’ll buy into the incredibly complicated magic act that wraps everything up.
More of a hang-out joint than a movie, perhaps, but maybe that’s the quality that made the first film a surprise hit in 2013. As long as it keeps poking fun at itself, this franchise will do all right.
“Now You See Me: 2” 2 ½ stars
A sequel to the 2013 surprise hit, this one reunites most of the cast of the first film and brings the storyline full circle. The saving grace here is that nobody takes this elaborate plot about superstar magicians too seriously, and the actors play it loose. With Mark Ruffalo, Jesse Eisenberg, Lizzy Caplan, Woody Harrelson.
Rating: PG-13, for subject matter
Showing: Alderwood, Alderwood mall, Cinebarre, Everett, Marysville, Meridian, Oak Tree, Pacific Place, Sundance Cinemas, Thornton Place, Woodinville
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