But lately the duos greatest deception is their public friendship, while secretly theyve grown to loathe each other. Not as incredible or magical as one would expect. Superstar magicians Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) have ruled the Las Vegas strip for years, raking in millions with illusions as big as Burts growing ego. The magic tricks are more shock, less awe. He is the catalyst who drives the film forward.įor a comedy, it's a little underwhelming. It is Alan Arkin as ageing magician and Burt's inspiration Rance Halloway, coming a little too late into the second half, who brings a rare grace, refreshing candour and understated chutzpah to the otherwise soul-less premise. Ditto with Carrey, who, as Steve Gray (modelled on David Blaine?) is the slapstick will-do-anything-crazy to Carell's monotonous all-too-subtle deadpan. We've seen it all, there's nothing new on offer. Down-on-his-luck Las Vegas magician Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) reunites with his old partner Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) to take on hip illusionist. The story is a truly plain connect-the-dots, its execution neither dazzling you with a spellbinding screenplay, nor keeping you enthralled with the illusions on display.Ĭarell, going by his regular standards, feels like an extension of his character, Burt Wonderstone. But as it turns out, not enough to keep you in it. Movie Review: A headlining cast like this is enough to convince you to buy a seat for this one. Do they recover from the bad spell or lose the magic their friendship had? Superstar magicians Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi) have ruled the Las Vegas strip for years, raking in millions with. Thanks to competition from a street magician and Burt's own humongous ego, their signature act and decade-long partnership ends.badly. Eric is the Editor-in-Chief of and writes for The Pitch. But after decades of churning out the same boring stage show night after night, Burt and Anton feel the heat of competition from an up-and-coming, David Blaine-esque street act named Steve Gray (Jim Carrey), who mistakes magic for torturous exercises in pain tolerance.Story: Burt Wonderstone and Anton Marvelton, partners in stage magic and friends since childhood, find themselves in a rut, drifting apart. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone has its share of fleeting laughs, so its not altogether unsuccessful, but it may just go down in history as a huge missed opportunity. The sometimes (intentionally) buffoonish comedian tries on Will Ferrell’s oversized ego to play the title character, a bullied child who found escape in magic and parlayed it into a headlining gig at Bally’s on the Las Vegas Strip for both himself and his life-long partner, Anton Marvelton (Steve Buscemi, who is tender, childlike and wonderful). Alan Arkin stars as old-school illusionist Rance Holloway, and James Gandolfini as wealthy casino owner Doug Munny. Pairing the dry Steve Carell with an unpredictable Jim Carrey promised more of a charge than what’s delivered in Burt, a decent comedy about dueling magicians that – ironically – says interesting things about pushing the envelope to entertain the audience … then stops short of pushing the envelope itself. The comedy 'The Incredible Burt Wonderstone' stars Steve Carell and Steve Buscemi as long-reigning headliners and one-time best friends Burt and Anton, and Olivia Wilde as their glamorous assistant, Jane.