6/10
Good magic movies are rare these days, and the Now You See Me movies have, in the past, filled that gap with flashy tricks and big, evolved personalities. But Now You See Me 3 only gets half of that right. The plot twist definitely surprises, and the homage to famous magicians is impressive, but the poor acting and rough script prevent the movie from reaching its full potential.
Now You See Me 3 reunites the Horsemen, a team of illusionists, for another difficult heist, but this time with even higher stakes and more elaborate tricks. Jesse Eisenberg returns as J. Daniel Atlas, Woody Harrelson as Merritt McKinney, Isla Fisher as Henley Reeves, and Dave Franco as Jack Wilder. They are joined by newcomers: Justice Smith as Charlie, Dominic Sessa as Bosco, and Ariana Greenblatt as June. Rosamund Pike is the villainous Veronika Vanderberg, whose illusions push the team’s trust and abilities to the limit.
The movie has all the ingredients for a spectacular three-quel, delivering on magic, spectacle, and a shocking plot twist. The execution, however, proves to be its downfall. The script often leans on cliches (like the expert versus the newbie), the pacing feels uneven, and the acting fails to sell the stakes. It’s entertaining, but inconsistent. It is an ambitious film that stumbles over its own human feet.
The plot follows the Horsemen as they’re pulled back into action after three young magicians, Charlie, Bosco, June, stage a fake Horsemen performance. Their act spirals when they get home and find Atlas in their house, holding a summoning card from an elite magician group the Horsemen are part of, forcing them to reunite for another heist. They must steal from Vanderberg, staying one step ahead of her and law enforcement. In true Now You See Me behavior, the movie turns the story on its head at the end, showing how each trick was done.
The recurring cast returns to their roles with confidence, but they fail to translate that into true on-screen chemistry. Eisenberg delivers every line like he’s speedrunning a monologue he memorized five minutes before filming. Dave Franco as Wilder feels like an unnecessary person to bring back in, as if he is just there for the chemistry between him and Lula, another of the characters.
The newcomers bring energy, but the script doesn’t give them time to build characters with a backstory. Justice Smith feels mysterious and grounded, Dominic Sessa is fun but seems like only a young version of Atlas, and Ariana Greenblatt has the energy but not the storyline. Rosamund Pike, however, stands out by fitting into her role and portrays her character as such.
The script leans on familiar heist tropes and hopes fast pacing will hide its thin character development. It doesn’t. Dialogue often feels choppy or weirdly patronizing, as if viewers are expected to be satisfied with surface level cleverness simply because the tricks look cool. It’s style over substance to the highest degree.
The directing, on the other hand, is visually impressive. The set design is filled with small details, the lighting is sharp and theatrical in a wellused way, and each illusion feels intentionally overwhelming. But whenever the movie tries to slow down for emotional moments like grief, tension or betrayal, it collapses on itself.
While the visuals and tricks are cleverly engineered, the film is unable to be more because the acting feels scattered, the relationships between actors lack feeling and weight, and the script just doesn’t slow down enough to let anything land. The film’s obsession with deception taps into more than just the magic. It mirrors how modern audiences interact with media. Like social media creators, Veronika Vanderberg curates an illusion of who she is to distract from the flaws and cracks in the truth. The movie comments on how easily audiences accept the spectacle over sincerity, and how hollow things feel when there are big moments that outshine the people. When every moment is created to impress instead of connect, you leave the theater feeling entertained, but not moved.
Now You See Me 3 dazzles when it needs to and entertains when it can, but it can’t escape the trap of its own illusions. The tricks may work, all depth and humanity disappears right in front of your eyes. This is just something to admire, even when you can’t fully believe in it.
