Illusion (2006)

2 Stars (out of 4)

Wishes and Clips

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

It's great to see Kirk Douglas still going strong after his 1995 stroke, but director Michael A. Goorjian seems to have catered directly to the actor's worst instincts with his new film Illusion. Douglas plays a retired movie director who apparently specialized in romances(!) without ever experiencing a great romance of his own. One night, a ghost -- the embodiment of a former film editor (Ron Morasco) -- appears to him and offers to show him three reels, recordings from the life of the son he never knew. Goorjian himself plays the son, a romantic hero who, through the three phases of his life, can't quite get together with the girl of his dreams (Karen Tucker). While these hugely melodramatic clips roll, Goorjian keeps cutting to Douglas watching, endlessly mugging and talking to the screen. The director continually shoots too high with his beloved star, forcing Douglas to play too large. As the son, Goorjian appears to have more ego than he does screen presence. A series of great actors in smaller roles, however, provide many pleasures, such as Gibson Frazier (Man of the Century) as an interviewer and Ted Raimi (Spider-Man 2, The Grudge) as a jealous creep. Ironically for a movie about the film business, Illusion is shot on grungy video and looks terrible.