Turn-of-the-century Vienna, and the city is all abuzz over the performances of Eisenheim, the illusionist (Edward Norton). There's so much excitement that even Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell) attends the show one night, and volunteers a young duchess from his party (Jessica Biel) to serve as Eisenheim's assistant for a trick.
Eisenheim recognizes her immediately; she is his childhood sweetheart, Sophie, and they had been separated nearly twenty years ago by her family, who would not allow her to socialize with a commoner. Sophie does eventually realize who Eisenheim is, but their relationship is even more forbidden now, as she is betrothed (reluctantly) to Leopold, who is rumored to be a violent man under the best of circumstances. This triangle leads to tragedy, and it falls to Chief Inspector Uhl (Paul Giamatti) to investigate. It's not an easy position for Uhl, who is torn between his professional loyalty to Leopold and his admiration for Eisenheim's craft.
The performances are generally quite good, though the actors occasionally relax and slump into body language that's much too contemporary. There's one shot in particular of Eisenheim waiting for Sophie's arrival; Norton plunges his hands into his pockets and his shoulders collapse in a way that is not at all elegant, European, or period-appropriate. The movie looks gorgeous, with lush sets and costumes, and old-fashioned iris shots marking the transitions between scenes.
I'd have been happier without the final scene, in which Uhl realizes (or at least thinks he does) what's actually happened, but at least it is presented in such a way that there's some ambiguity about whether we're seeing the actual events or merely Uhl's hopeful fantasy about what might have happened.
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