Many have argued that cinema itself is an illusion, so it seems just that a film about characters involved in various illusions should itself end up being the biggest trick of all. Not since The Usual Suspects has a film so deliciously toyed with its audience for so long, to fully reveal itself only in its final minutes. Until then, The Illusionist won’t just keep you guessing, it will lead you down a false road -- or two or three -- even though you are told at the outset that everything you are about to see is illusion and tricks. But we tend to believe what we see.

Set in 19th-century Vienna, The Illusionist is shot in an opulent, gauzy way that makes the city look like a Disneyland portrait. Even the humblest setting has charm and grace. Eisenheim (Edward Norton), a great illusionist, enthralls audiences with his superior magic tricks. At one sold-out performance, he runs into Sophie Von Teschen (Jessica Biel), a childhood sweetheart who has become the consort of the hot-tempered, arrogant, and villainous Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell). Eisenheim and Sophie’s love is rekindled, and he asks her to leave the Prince and go with him. She tells him that this will be more difficult than it appears.

A traumatic event then provides the impetus for the main part of the story. As a result, Eisenheim disappears from the public eye, then reappears at his own newly purchased theater, where he seemingly conjures up ghosts of the dead. A sect of religious zealots believes that Eisenheim’s illusions defy an afterlife and protest in the streets. At this point, one is not sure: Is Eisenheim merely an illusionist, or has the film taken a turn toward the supernatural?

His face hidden behind a beard and framed in long hair, Edward Norton is mesmerizing as Eisenheim. All that hair diverts the viewer’s attention to Norton’s eyes, which are incredibly commanding and revealing. His magician always seems in control, regardless of the situation. Although Eisenheim’s human frailty has been revealed in a love scene with Sophie and we know that his heart might be broken, his exterior remains cool -- except when the camera zooms in on those eyes, which tell all. Or do they?

Norton’s two main opponents are quite different in character. Rufus Sewell acts his part of the scoundrel Prince Leopold just to the top without going over it. Chief Inspector Uhl (Paul Giamatti), himself an amateur magician, is torn between exposing Eisenheim to further his own political goals and finding out the truth. Giamatti perfectly captures the conflicted nature of this character; his scenes with Norton are coolly and intelligently electrifying.

We would expect these three actors to be at the top of their game in a period piece such as this. A surprise is Jessica Biel, who proves, through her intelligence, grace, and charm, to be a fine actress. She is also lovely. One can easily imagine the mere sight of her rekindling emotions that Eisenheim thinks have been lost.

Director Neil Burger, who also wrote the script (based on Steven Millhauser’s short story "Eisenheim the Illusionist"), keeps the pace sure and steady without resorting to histrionics. The tricks are reported to be modeled on actual illusions of the period; other hands might have used excessive CGI and made this movie a ridiculous horror show, but Burger and his crew have kept their cool, beguiling us with illusions that seem so real that we do not doubt them even as we suspect them. Everything is aided by a Philip Glass score that conjures mystery in the simplest of ways -- a deceptive feat that fits right in with the script.

See this magical film and you will be beguiled into believing every minute of it, only to wake and find you have been duped -- but you’ve had such a good time that you won’t mind. As cinematic illusions go, The Illusionist is one of the best.

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