Sleight (2016)
Directed by J.D. Dillard
A young street magician is left to take care of his little sister after his mother's passing and turns to drug dealing in the Los Angeles party scene to keep a roof over their heads. When he gets into trouble with his supplier, his sister is kidnapped and he is forced to rely on both his sleight of hand and brilliant mind to save her.
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Movies.com > Movie News > 'Chronicle' Meets 'Iron Man' Meets 'Menace II Society' in 'Sleight'…
One could see the film as akin to “Chronicle” or the year-one origin-story of a stripped down Miles Morales “Spider-Man” movie, before he actually transforms into a hero.
The combination that kept entering my mind as I watched it was “ Chronicle ” meets “ Dope ,” both in terms of its substance and what it similarly achieves with a minimal budget.
Like a cross between Chronicle and Dope with a dash of Now You See Me, Sleight follows a talented young street magician named Bo (Jacob Latimore) who is not only reluctantly caught up in the drug trade, but is experimenting on his own body to improve his illusions.
It’s as if Dillard wants to one-up “Chronicle” (which he manages to do in the cinematography department, at least), or else pile on to M. Night Shyamalan’s fast-expanding “Unbreakable” universe (Blum also produced the hit “Split,” after all).
On the surface, “Sleight” resembles an indie superhero film in the vein of Josh Trank’s “Chronicle”.
Like its protagonist, Sleight is a scrappy, semi-super origin story that lacks the existential heft of, say, M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable, or the grim comic nihilism of James Gunn’s Super.
It’s as if Dillard wants to one-up “Chronicle” (which he manages to do in the cinematography department, at least), or else pile on to M. Night Shyamalan’s fast-expanding “Unbreakable” universe (Blum also produced the hit “Split,” after all).
It’s a line that wouldn’t feel out of place in Christopher Nolan’s “The Prestige,” as Christian Bale’s thaumaturge pledges similar sacrifices to his craft at all costs.
Like a cross between Chronicle and Dope with a dash of Now You See Me, Sleight follows a talented young street magician named Bo (Jacob Latimore) who is not only reluctantly caught up in the drug trade, but is experimenting on his own body to improve his illusions.
If you came for an indie Now You See Me, you might be disappointed: The card tricks and illusions are few and far between.
It’s like Now You See Me, but with actual stakes.