Magic in the Moonlight — Blue Fairy Film Blog

Allen has always had an interest in vintage 1920s appeal, whether it’s the detective novels of Raymond Chandler (The Curse of the Jade Scorpion) or the literary scene of Paris (Midnight in Paris), or the glamour and sophistication of Hollywood’s golden age (Café Society). In this ode to spiritualism and screwball romances of yesteryear, Allen follows the exploits of a politically incorrect magician who needs the good love of a clairvoyant to come out of his shell. Starring Emma Stone and Colin Firth, this is a sweet, if problematic, comedy that looks and feels nostalgically intimate.

The story is mostly set at the Côte d'Azur during the 1920s, in the realm of the wealthy and easily deceived. The cast, as always, is assembled of some of the best supporting actors in the business, including Jacki Weaver, Hamish Linklater, and Marcia Gay Harden. Emma Stone plays a mystic who tries to connect a wealthy woman (Weaver) to her dead husband, and in doing so attracts the attention of her son (Linklater). Firth is employed by an old friend (McBurney) to debunk her existence and expose her as a fraud. The film remains enchantingly sweet throughout, no doubt because of Stone’s charm and the breathtaking cinematography.

Firth’s character, Stanley, dons yellow face and pretends to be a Chinese magician from the Orient. This depiction is based on William Ellsworth Robinson who pretended to be a Chinese magician for much of his life, and never broke character. This portrayal is based in history, and therefore can’t be too reproached, but seeing Firth in the guise of Wei Ling Soo was honestly horrifying. This choice of historical reconstruction and reproduction is never really mentioned or acknowledged after the beginning, making it that much more off-putting. Just as unnerving is the age difference between the two leads, who are separated by a 28 year age gap. Honestly, I liked both of their characters and it’s not like the film didn’t build to their eventual romance, but in the end I just found it creepy. It’s not because this is a Woody Allen film, though that doesn’t help matters. These two people would probably never get together in any true circumstance and it bugs me. Older men and younger women in film is nothing new, but here it feels particularly out of place.

Besides that this is a film without much to it. It’s pretty, with nice dialogue and good performances, but it’s formulaic and similar to Allen’s other works. There’s nothing altogether interesting or deep to the story except to say that mysticism is bupkiss, which has been generally accepted by the general public for many decades. If you want to watch a nice nostalgia driven romantic comedy I would better recommend The Purple Rose of Cairo.