But compared to recent Allen movies like “Midnight in Paris” and last year’s “Blue Jasmine” (which netted Cate Blanchett a Best Actress Oscar), “Magic” feels like a step down, especially thanks to the flat ending. Finally, many scenes depict dangerous behavior for children, like a water fight where insecticide is used as ammunition. On its own, you could dismiss it as a quaint but flawed film. Smoking and drinkingwhich were throughout the older version as wellare also frequent (although in this updated version the coach celebrates by offering low alcohol beer to the kids). There’s really no way to look at “Magic” without comparing it to Allen’s other work, and the sad truth is that if you aren’t already a fan, this one isn’t likely to make you a convert. But instead of resolving any of these threads, a formulaic ending delivers the audience an unfinished work of a final product that feels like the filmmaker finally just decided to cap off in order to meet a deadline. “Magic” also flirts with that old condescending notion that perhaps a naïve belief in the unknown isn’t such a bad thing if it keeps us happy and the big, bad truth at bay. It’s an interesting issue - can the head and the heart ever truly find harmony? - but the twists and turns of the script and the deep flaws of the characters keep any satisfying answers from really taking hold. ![]() ![]() His world has been turned upside down, but luckily he has his wise Aunt Vanessa (Eileen Atkins) around to guide him through his crisis. All his life he’s played the cynic, but now he must consider the possibility we all hate: that we might be wrong about something. Confronted with the unexplainable, Stanley must in turn confront his own beliefs.
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