Friday Flicks: Are Will and Jaden Smith Out of This World in After Earth?

TIME breaks down which films to see and which to avoid this weekend.

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Will Smith and Jaden Smith attend a photocall to promote their new film 'After Earth' at the W Hotel on May 29, 2013 in Saint-Petersburg, Russia.

Now You See Me

Tagline: The closer you look, the less you’ll see.

French-born director Louis Leterrier might be able to sympathize with Shyamalan when it comes to unkind reviews. His movies, such as Clash of the Titans and The Incredible Hulk didn’t exactly receive raves, but the tide could be turning. Starring the likes of Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo and Woody Harrelson, Now You See Me tells the story of an elite FBI squad going up against the world’s best illusionists, “The Four Horsemen,” in a game of cat and mouse. “The Four Horsemen” manage to pull off a series of audacious heists against corrupt business leaders during their performances. And in a twist Robin Hood would be proud of, they then shower audiences with their newly-found wealth.

While Leterrier isn’t exactly being showered with praise, he’s arguably not going to hear criticism such as “It isn’t a train wreck – a train wreck would be memorable,” which was part of New York magazine’s review of Clash of the Titans (which happened to be released the same year as The Last Airbender). And perhaps that’s down to the fact that he’s happier with the script – in fact, any script – if we go by this recent interview. Back to the present and the A.V. Club gives Now You See Me a solid B grade: “Moving so quickly its flaws barely register — the blockbuster equivalent of sleight-of-hand — Now You See Me fares best when simply relying on the no-illusions chemistry between its leads.” But Movie Nation can’t summon up the same enthusiasm, concluding that “For all its showmanship, Now You See Me has a lot less up its sleeve than it lets on.”

LIST: Richard Corliss Previews the Movies of Summer 2013

NewsFeed’s Flicks Pick: Neither of this week’s directors have the best of recent track records, but Leterrier’s latest looks to have more going for it. You may need to be quick to catch it on the big screen before it’s eclipsed by the summer blockbusters. Now You See Me? It could end up being a case of, Now you don’t.

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