Sylvain Chomet’s first full-length feature, The Triplets of Belleville, was one of the best films of 2003. His latest, The Illusionist, premiered in New York and Los Angeles on December 25, with bigger, flashier movies playing next door. But The Illusionist—which goes into wide release next Friday—is totally charming, beautifully crafted, and not to be missed.
Film great Jacques Tati wrote the script as a gift to his daughter. (The title character bears a strong resemblance to Tati’s own Monsieur Hulot.) Chomet, who came to the project decades later, switched a few locations around but left the sensibility pretty much intact. (At one point, Chomet’s illusionist stumbles into a movie theater and finds himself staring up at Tati’s Play Time.) There are barely any words in this film—which reminded us, at times, of the long, silent opening section of Pixar’s WALL-E. But there’s plenty of wit, subtlety, and feeling.
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