The Illusionist (2010) is an animated film about a French illusionist named Tatischeff and a young girl named Alice from the remote Scottish island of Iona who seems to believe that Tatischeff has genuine magical powers. Believing resolutely in in his extraordinary powers Alice follows Tatischeff back to Edinburgh where they live together in a meager guest house.
This is a film about the relationship between a father figure and the young girl who adores him. How young eyes look up to their parental figure as a kind of mythical hero – capable of magical feats. As such, it is a film that is very relatable in its theme.
Hand drawn and animated with nearly no dialogue this film conveys so much genuine human emotion in it’s 79 minutes that it feels more emotionally honest than most live action films can manage. I am reminded of Isao Takahata’s exceptional Grave of the Fireflies (1988) that managed to convey the emotional turmoil of a brother and sister trying to survive in a war torn Japan during WW2. With The Illusionist director Sylvain Chomet captures the bittersweet reality of an Illusionist trying to please the only person who really enjoys his magic tricks anymore – a young girl. Finding it harder and harder to live with Illusionist acts becoming less and less sought after, Tatischeff seems to be spiraling into a dark place. This is a world in the 1950’s that is becoming tired of stage acts like Tatischeff’s and more interested in the rip roaring live music scene scene of the time. Everywhere Tatischeff goes he is reminded of his acquaintance Billy Boy and his musical band who seem to be getting bigger and bigger while he struggles to find work. This is a bleak reality for Tatischeff, however, when Alice finds so much joy in his magic he finds a reason to keep going and keep making her happy.
The film is lovely to look at too. The animators capture the natural nuances of an older man’s movements and contrasts these joyfully with the eager energy of the young Alice. Taking place mostly in Edinburgh the film captures the essence of the city better than any film I have seen. Set in the 1950’s the city bursts to life through the animators attention to detail and flair for sweeping vistas. Vivid frames of animation pan across a wonderfully realized Arthur’s seat, the castle and the city in all it’s glory in one memorable sequence. Other details like bustling steam trains, glowing gas lamps and rickety 1950’s automobiles bring the city to life. However, really the only way to get across how fantastic looking this film is to watch it in motion and be transported back to an older Edinburgh that feels so vibrantly alive.
You can’t have a good film set in Scotland without it being a little bittersweet and with a healthy sense of sadness and the The Illusionist captures this. Sadness seems to be an essential element of the Scottish existence, it’s painted on our purple hills, written on our rough yet beautiful coastlines and placed within our people who are as quick to party with the best of them during the Festival and Hogmany but just as quick to cry when Auld Lang Syne starts. It’s not something to be ashamed of but rather shows the Scottish honesty to ourselves – we don’t mind showing our emotions – all of them and The Illusionist captures that Scottish feeling perfectly. There are moments of genuine sadness but there are also moments of giddy joy made all the more enjoyable thanks to range of feeling on display.
This is easily one of the best animated feature films ever made and a personal favourite film of my own – I can’t recommend it enough!
The Illusionist (Cert PG) is coming to Balerno Village Screen on Saturday 15th June screening at 4.30pm – please reserve a ticket if you wish to attend
Review by Darran Murphy
Find out more about Darran and his work at foxxiecinnamon