Part clever heist thriller, part fantasy romp for babies, this story of hipster magician conspiracy finds itself very confused very quickly.

The plot drifts casually from a satisfying deconstruction of magic tricks into contradictory scenes that imply the use of actual magical powers. Making sense out of the apparently impossible is this movie’s main pitch, and yet so many incidental pieces of magic go completely unexplained.

One particular action scene sees characters teleport and disappear inexplicably. The filmmakers defy their own vow of chastity, hoping that the charm of the cast will let them coast – and with *three* sets of protagonists to root for (the magicians, the detectives and the magic exposers) even that feels disorienting.

Now You See Me makes promises it doesn’t keep, with director Louis Leterrier unable to control his own impulses (enjoy the endless and uncomfortably intimate close-ups of Mélanie Laurent by the way). They make the plates at the buffet small for a reason, Louis. Enjoy your diabetes.