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Illusion

Play trailer Poster for Illusion PG-13 Released Oct 23, 2004 1h 46m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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36% Tomatometer 11 Reviews 87% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
Donald Baines (Kirk Douglas) is a legendary filmmaker in the twilight of his life. Slowly dying, he watches his life's work in a private screening room, but he is haunted by the sacrifices he made for his art, and especially by the rejection of Christopher (Michael Goorjian), his illegitimate son. One night, the ghost of a long-dead movie editor transports Donald to an old theater, where he sees three visions of his son's life and gets a final chance to make a change in that life.

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Illusion

Critics Reviews

View All (11) Critics Reviews
Moira MacDonald Seattle Times There's a sincerity to the filmmaking here that's at times quite touching: Illusion presents a portrait of true love that's as picture perfect as the sunny spring garden in which we see Isabelle. Rated: 2.5/4 Feb 24, 2006 Full Review Mick LaSalle San Francisco Chronicle Douglas does his best acting while watching and reacting to what he sees on screen. If this ends up being his cinematic swan song, it will not have been a bad way to go. Rated: 2.5/4 Feb 17, 2006 Full Review Luke Y. Thompson New Times No doubt the director worked with what he could get, and was extremely fortunate that he could get an icon of the screen to bless his project. Mar 16, 2006 Full Review Mike McGranaghan Aisle Seat One of the worst dramas I have ever seen. In fact, this movie is so dramatically inept that I wanted to tear my eyeballs out. Rated: 0.5/4 Mar 8, 2006 Full Review Rory L. Aronsky Film Threat Unavoidably, there are some sugary moments and clichs such as rain-soaked kisses and outlandish "artistic" stage performances, but [Illusion] keeps hold of that just-another-day-in-Hollywood feeling. Rated: 3/5 Feb 26, 2006 Full Review William Arnold Seattle Post-Intelligencer Several of its transitions are glaringly contrived, and its morality tale never quite comes together to be the shattering spiritual experience it wants to be. Rated: C+ Feb 23, 2006 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member Clever, beautiful movie and a testimony to what cinema should be. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/08/23 Full Review Audience Member Excellent movie want to own Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member The acting had me constantly rolling my eyes, and for a movie that is so centered on a great film maker, the film making was awful. Very contrived. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Very good love story. I can watch this again and again Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review Audience Member Touching tear-jerker, self-involved movie director's life flashes before his eyes Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Audience Member This was a movie that I can only explain as a new John Hughes movie with a twist. I really enjoyed both the performances of Kirk Douglas and Michael Goorjian. The whole film was surreal, but it was very creative in the way it moves the plot along. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Illusion

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis Donald Baines (Kirk Douglas) is a legendary filmmaker in the twilight of his life. Slowly dying, he watches his life's work in a private screening room, but he is haunted by the sacrifices he made for his art, and especially by the rejection of Christopher (Michael Goorjian), his illegitimate son. One night, the ghost of a long-dead movie editor transports Donald to an old theater, where he sees three visions of his son's life and gets a final chance to make a change in that life.
Director
Michael A. Goorjian
Producer
Kevin Weisman
Screenwriter
Michael A. Goorjian, Chris Horvath, Tressa DiFiglia
Distributor
Entitled Entertainment
Production Co
Entitled Entrtainment, Maldoror Productions, Illusion Productions
Rating
PG-13 (Some Violence)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 23, 2004, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Feb 17, 2006
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 12, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA)
$9.3K
Runtime
1h 46m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
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