Why ‘Now You See Me’ deserves to be in the Netflix charts
Timing is everything in showbiz. Every time a sleeper hit gets a life on Netflix, critics and tabloids lose their calm, dissecting the triggers behind the streaming phenomenon. But that’s a story for those that fail to hit the mark in the first place; quite non-applicable to works of genius like Now You See Me. The 2013 heist flick is currently reigning on Netflix’s global top ten weekly movies chart at number two, right behind Tyler Perry’s Straw.
Now You See Me is Louis Leterrier’s American heist film, and the first in the franchise. In a world where smoke and mirrors meet smoke and guns, an FBI agent and Interpol detective are tasked with pulling back the velvet curtain on a troupe of illusionists, The Horsemen, but with a twist. Their magic tricks double as daring heists, and the even bigger curveball? The final loot lands in another former magician’s car, who has made a killing by lifting the veil on other magicians’ illusions for decades.
In terms of storytelling, Now You See Me is a masterpiece. It also generated a massive cash flow, grossing a staggering $351.7million against a $70m budget at the time of its release. Then, what prompts the mass re-run? There is no doubt that Now You See Me is indeed a work of art, and perhaps a 100 rewatches still won’t invite fatigue. But why now, out of all this time? One plausible reason could be that the Horsemen are returning this year. And the best way to welcome the new additions is at the top of the charts.
The third film in the series, Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, is scheduled to be released this year on November 14th. The upcoming movie comes nine years after the release of Now You See Me 2. According to the plot teased so far, the four Horsemen saddle up for yet another trick by assembling a team of three master illusionists for a daring diamond heist from a crime family’s grasp. Now You See Me: Now You Don’t comprises returning actors such as Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Morgan Freeman as well as new ones.
Additionally, Isla Fisher reprises her role. Considering the gap between the first flick and the third one is more than a decade, and the one between the second and the latest is far bigger than the previous hiatus, viewers are clearly caving back in for a refresher. And given that Now You See Me didn’t have to struggle to reach the position even after all these years, what else deserves the rank if not this flick?
Then again, this is just the start. With each new day, the anticipation is going to rise more about what’s to come, circling fans back to where it all started. It’s a shining example of the streaming paradox. While for many, a rewatch may be a warm-up ahead of Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, for some, it’s a fresh one, to buckle up for the next.
If the rise of Now You See Me on Netflix proves anything, it is the power of relevance regardless of the passage of time. Sure, the algorithmic magic does its part. But if it were not for the storytelling, the franchise momentum, and the box office appeal, then the frenzy wouldn’t even last for the first, let alone reach the third. Moreover, Now You See Me 2 is also climbing fast on the Netflix charts as if the streaming universe is sending cryptic clues to fasten your seatbelts.