Death Defying Acts

(Gillian Armstrong, UK, Australia) 97min

It’s 1926, and the world tour of escape artist Harry Houdini (Guy Pearce) brings him to Edinburgh. There he’s charmed by local con-artist Mary McGarvie (Catherine Zeta-Jones), who poses as a psychic to put Houdini in touch with his beloved dead mother. But what begins as a simple scam is complicated by their increasingly intertwined hearts.

The intriguing premise of this historical romance, which freely mixes fact with fiction, was dreamed up by co-writers Tony Grisoni (Brothers of the Head) and Glaswegian Brian Ward. Their script neatly contrasts deceptions of a professional and personal nature, and there are fine performances from the leads and their support: Timothy Spall and Atonement’s Saoirse Ronan. The film is let down in the end, however, by Gillian Armstrong’s surprisingly flat direction.

Cineworld, Tue 24 Jun, 8pm; Thu 26 Jun, 5pm, £8 (£6.40).

More: Film, Reviews (Film), Brian Ward, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Death Defying Acts, Edinburgh Festivals, Edinburgh International Film Festival, EIFF, Film Festival, Gillian Armstrong, Guy Pearce, Saoirse Ronan, Timothy Spall, Tony Grisoni

Death Defying Acts

Date	Location
Freely mixing historical fact with fictionalised biography, this film turns on a fascinating premise: a battle of wits and wills between world-famous escapist and sceptic of all things supernatural Harry Houdini (Pearce) and a Scots con-woman posing as a psychic (Zeta-Jones). Interesting as all that sounds, though, 'Death Defying Acts' is surprisingly dull.
23 Nov Sun 2.30	Tower Mill, Kirkstile

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