ALLIED

Brad Pitt     Marion Cottiard     Jared Harris     Lizzie Caplan     Matthew Goode

          “Marriages made in the field never work”, so says Max’s superior on learning that Max (Pitt) and Marianne (Cottiard) have gotten married.  The two were partners in a successful operation that killed a German ambassador during WWII.  The statement is prophetic, but not in any way Max suspects.  Nevertheless, the couple seems very happy together, they have a child, and except for Max being called away frequently for work, their life is golden.

         The film begins with the first meeting of Max and Marianne in Casablanca, Morocco, where they have to convince everyone in the community that they are married and are uniting after a long separation. In truth they are British and French spies who are charged with a critical operation.  It’s interesting to see this introduction, as I imagine it’s a true reflection of the awkwardness that agents must experience when they are pulling off an act with someone they’ve never met before.  Marianne seems more experienced than Max—she has certainly been in Casablanca for a longer time, and since she is charismatic and very social, she has made many friends.  He doesn’t seem to mind; when he is put to the test of being a card shark in order to be invited to a party, his assets are quickly apparent.

          Things seem to float along; Max is promoted and Marianne seems entirely fulfilled with her role as homemaker and mother.  Then some earth-shattering news (for them) arrives, and Max is in a major dilemma.  That’s when the cat-and-mouse game really starts, for despite his instructions to do nothing, Max can’t help doing some investigating on his own.

        The script by Steven Knight (who also wrote Dirty Pretty Things, Eastern Promises, and Locke, which he also directed) is layered and nuanced, and the central, ultimate conflict is intriguing, both in its conception and in its resolution.  Unlike Knight’s previous film, Locke, which was an ingenious account of a man in a car on the telephone, Allied contains some artificialities in some of the scenes that detract from its plausibility, e.g., the couple’s baby being born in a building while it is being bombed, and an operation to extract information from a man in jail resulting in numerous killings).  These are unnecessary exaggerations.  It may be that the director, Robert Zemeckis, who nevertheless has fine work to his credit, and/or the producers wanted to hype up the story, which results in my reaction of “Oh, c’mon!"  But this is not a major detraction.

         Marion Cottiard carries off the role of a spy to perfection and with real heart.  At one point her character states that she is so good at what she does because she uses genuine emotions.  And that is what Cottiard does in acting; we’re drawn to the charisma and quick wit she infuses into her characters.  Brad Pitt is…well, Brad Pitt is so known to us because of all the publicity he gets in his personal life, that it may interfere with our seeing the character.  It was Brad before me the whole time rather than Max the character.  On the other hand, he is usually a very good actor, and perhaps the filming of Allied occurred during a stressful time in his personal life, which could have affected his performance.  I thought the chemistry just wasn’t completely there between Max and Marianne.

A spy thriller with imaginatively conceived intrigue.

Grade:  B                                    By Donna R. Copeland

NOW YOU SEE ME 2

Mark Ruffalo   Lizzie Caplan   Daniel Radcliffe   Jesse Eisenberg   Dave Franco  

Morgan Freeman   Woody Harrelson   Michael Caine   Sanaa Lathan

          Dazzling sleights of hand, cat and mouse chases, vengeance, and power struggles continue the essence of the Now You See Me films (#3 is already planned).  Revelations about mysteries left unresolved in the first picture are cleverly revealed, specifically with regard to Thaddeus Bradley (Freeman).

        The Four Horsemen of Now You See Me have been in hiding for a year after they robbed their sponsor’s Parisian bank account during their performance in New York to give the spoils to their audience, many of who were victims of Hurricane Katrina.  They have been in training for the next big caper, the details of which have not been revealed.  They’re restless and resentful that the secret society from whom they receive their instructions, the Eye, has not provided them with more challenges.  The sponsor of their original show, Arthur Tressler (Caine) of Tressler Insurance, had not been generous to the victims, so the Horsemen considered themselves Robinhood figures who give to the poor what the rich have withheld.  Now, finally, the magic troupe has plans to reappear by usurping a major advertising promotion by the company Octa in London, 

         But the FBI is after them for their previous heist, along with Thaddeus, in jail for his role in the previous story, and Tressler, who lost millions in one of their heists.  Along for the venomous ride this time is Tressler’s son Walter (Radcliffe) who has a big investment in pleasing and redeeming his father.

         Sanguine truths are sprinkled about through this story to at least give it some depth.  Walter, who has learned from his father the value of secrecy, says, “True freedom is not being seen”, an astute observation of one who wants his actions and behavior to remain anonymous.  Another character emphatically refers to the “power of an empty fist”, so useful in magic tricks.  And finally, in the last few moments, Thaddeus observes that “Seeing is believing…” but he thinks it’s important to ask whether what’s seen is truth or lie.  (It’s noted that belief has ‘lie’ in the middle of the word.) 

        When the film begins, we learn that one of the Horsemen (played by Isla Fisher) is missing, and the team needs to recruit another.  After some disagreement, cheeky Lula (Caplan) is accepted and wins their respect for her skills.  Magic tricks are very similar to those in the first film, and all the actors are captivating in their renditions.  Radcliffe does a fine, convincing job in being evil with daddy issues.

          The last scenes are clearly set-ups for Now You See Me 3.

If you liked the first one, you’ll probably enjoy Now You See Me 2.  If not, skip it.

           

Grade:  C+                        By Donna R. Copeland