By Ellie Smith
Staff Writer

On Friday, March 15, the opening day of the new comedy The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, the movie theater at the Showcase Cinemas Lowell was less than packed. Less than half of the seats were filled with barely amused viewers.

The film’s plot follows a young, outcasted boy who receives a magic kit for his birthday and many years later becomes a famous magician with his best friend Anton Marvelton. After 10 years of performing the same, overused magic show at a Las Vegas hotel, new magician Steve Gray enters the picture, and their popularity dwindles. Their friendship is tested and the pair must come up with a way to get back on top.

The hardly comical plot line contained dry, crude humor mixed with somewhat gory magic acts that were unappealing to most viewers. Laughter in the theater was for the most part nonexistent, with only a few snickers from viewers at the scenes containing slightly amusing jokes.

Luckily, the experienced actors Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi and Jim Carey added some entertainment value with their superb acting skills. Their experience in comedy allowed some normally unamusing jokes to seem more appealing and comical to viewers.

During the more gruesome scenes, the special effects were very well done. In one gory magic act performed by Steve Gray (Carey), the magician must cut into his own face in order to retrieve a card chosen by a shocked audience member. Gray then presumed to seal the wound using a sewing needle and thread.

In the less gruesome scenes, audience members were in awe over the fascinating and believable tricks that Wonderstone (Carell) and Marvelton (Buscemi) performed in front of the audience using special effects.

The music throughout most scenes was fitting and well chosen. Each time Wonderstone and Marvelton entered the stage before a magic show, a catchy theme song was played as they awkwardly danced their way onto the stage to the beat of the music. Intense music was played during the suspenseful magic acts.

A highlight of the film was the colorful, stereotypical costumes. The typical magician costumes helped to capture the essence of the film and suited the characters well.

This barely amusing comedy is not worth the money. Gruesome scenes combined with moderately humorous jokes will bore most audiences and doesn’t show the talented actors’ experience in comedy films. My recommendation would be to spend your time and money somewhere else.