The Illusionist (trailer), rated PG-13, starring Brooklyn Heights' own Paul Giamatti along with Edward Norton and Jessica Biel opens at the the Brooklyn Heights Cineman I & II today.
Stephen Holden writes in the New York Times: This screen adaptation of Steven Millhauser’s short story, “Eisenheim the Illusionist,” gives Mr. Norton a role that perfectly fits his disturbing inscrutability. His face, with obsidian eyes that take in everything but reflect nothing, and a tight little mouth, is an impenetrable mask of either innocence or cunning; you’re never sure which. Only the corners of his eyes glint like icicles.
Few musical notes are buried in his flat, dry speaking voice, an ideal instrument for conveying an ominous inner deadness. Throughout the movie Eisenheim remains a man of mystery whose few, carefully chosen words project a wary, possibly phony omniscience.
The Quiet (trailer), rated R, also opens at the BHC today. It stars Elisha Cuthbert, best known for her role as Jack Bauer's daughter on 24, and The Sopananos' Edie Falco.
Associated Press movie critic Christy Lemire writes: Not a single moment feels believable in the film "The Quiet," which tries very hard to be a sexy, intense psychological thriller but instead just feels lurid and exploitative. Not a single person feels relatable; everyone's actions are either deplorable or pathetic. Or both.
The worst part is that it wastes a talented cast, including Elisha Cuthbert and Edie Falco — actors we know can shine when given the opportunity. What they have to work with in "The Quiet," which was directed by Jamie Babbit from a script by Abdi Nazemian and Micah Schraft, merely asks them to sleepwalk through myriad suburban cliches, sometimes literally.
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