One can imagine an incredible film about magicians that plays it entirely straight. A picture that relys entirely on the performers’ talents for sleight of hand and stagecraft. The magicians as con artists/Robin Hoods series, Now You See Me, however, has no interest in that sort of thing. The third installment, called Now You See Me Now You Don’t, in a delayed act of correct titling, REALLY doesn’t care to get its kicks that way.

And yet, it does the idea of big stage magic justice by embracing why people love it. It’s silly, cheesy, and unapologetically over-the-top. It may not be Houdini, but for generations raised on Copperfield maximalism, mindfreaking, and Blaine unsettling, invasive arrogance, it fits the bill.

While it has been nine years since Now You See Me 2 in our world, in the world of NYSM, Now You See Me Now You Don’t takes place a decade after the Horsemen disappeared. And yet, the Horsemen are seemingly playing gigs in abandoned warehouses in Bushwick. And with their original lineup, besides! Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher), is back in the fold, replacing her replacement, Lula May (Lizzy Caplan). That it is one of several quickly resolved mysteries as to way that is is one of the film’s pleasure. It gets that magic tricks work best when not dragged out.

The Four (but that number can vary) Horsemen still rip off the rich to distribute to their fans, it appears. Just on a smaller scale. The how and why of what’s going on is the film’s first trick so it will remain unspoiled, but suffice to say it pulls in three new faces, former actor and kind of dick Bosco Leroy (Dominic Sessa), skilled lockpick and the team’s athlete June (Ariana Greenblatt), and their idea man, the spotlight shy magic fanboy Charlie (Justice Smith).

The ten years away were no illusion. Apparently, a job—a trick in this case, one supposes—went bad and left Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) at the mercy of a Russian weapons smuggler. Their failure broke the team up, with seemingly only Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg) having the stomach to keep going. However, the new teammates and the Eye’s (the secret society of magician do-gooders) insistence dragged them back together. The target this time? Veronika Vanderberg (Rosamund Pike), diamond mogul and international crimelord, whose family’s penchant for crime goes back to laundering money for Nazis who escaped international law.

Given the predecessors of Now You See Me Now You Don’t involve forcefully redistributing the wealth of one of the world’s wealthiest men through stage magic and hypnotizing tech bros into confessing their crimes, it is a little unfair to say this is the installment where things get wild. But with the expanded cast, it is the installment that suggests that the NYSM franchise may have designs on being magicians’ answer to the Fast and Furious films. To be clear, it lacks either the dark nastiness of the fourth installment, which is too often incorrectly labeled the worst, or the sublimely bonkers treats of Furious 7. But it seems likely director Ruben Fleischer and the quartet of screenwriters Seth Grahame-Smith, Michael Lesslie, Rhett Reese, and Paul Wernick have those car wizards on the brain.

Speaking of Fleischer, one does sometimes miss the series’ previous directors during Now You See Me Now You Don’t. This installment lacks both first director Louis Leterrier’s talent for propulsive action and follow-up director John M. Chu’s sense of rhythm. Fleischer doesn’t provide a signature setpiece, unlike the previous films. He also fumbles one of the key emotional scenes with antagonist-turned-mentor Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), making choices in framing and pacing that are all wrong.

Still, he is an adequate choice. He manages the store well, if you will. His best moment is a game of one-upmanship between all the magicians as they engage in an escalating series of disappearances, escapes, costume changes, and close-up tricks. He knows to linger back and let the cast’s chemistry sell the moment.  

I can’t decide whether Pike gives the best or the worst performance in the film, but either way, I intend it as a compliment. She takes the notoriously hard-to-master South African accent fearlessly out for a walk. She may not ever quite get it right, but she has so much fun with it, it’s near impossible not to join in the fun. Every line feels like a come-on and a threat rolled into one. She’s a delight.

And that’s the area code Now You See Me Now You Don’t lands in, too. Long on charm, short on sense, and all in all a good time at the movies.

Now You See Me Now You Don’t apparates in theatres November 14.

Now You See Me Now You Don’t Trailer: