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CinemaPsych PodcastAuthor: Alexander B. Swan
Where psychology meets films. We dissect and analyze popular films and their psychological content. Language: en Genres: Science, Social Sciences, TV & Film Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Episode 122: Magic Hijacks Your Weak Attentional Systems, Even if You Look Close — Now You See Me (2013) with Chelsea Bell
Episode 122
Monday, 26 October, 2026
Join Alex and Chelsea Bell as they explore the magical world of illusion craft and sleight of hand in Now You See Me (2013), Louis Leterrier's hodge-podge of heist, mystery, and real-world magic. The film is a dominant ensemble, featuring Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, Mark Ruffalo, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Melanie Laurent. The different kinds of magic portrayed are discussed, along with the ways that magic, illusion, and misdirection work on the limitations of the human brain, including attention and cognitive biases. The episode also forays into topics related to magic, like hypnosis and suggestibility, and subliminal priming. Though the film attempts to ground itself in real-world illusions and the shortcomings of a cognitive system, there is some "movie magic" that makes some things happen, like the ultimate twist involving one of the main characters... Listen close to the episode, or you might miss something! Check out the Annual Meeting for the Psychological and Educational Researchers in Kansas, happening each November! If you like this content, you might like my Audible audiobook/course, A Psychologist Goes to the Movies, available now! It features six films that have been on this show, condensed into 25-30 min essays, researched and analyzed. Please leave your feedback on this post, the main site (cinemapsychpod.swanpsych.com), on Facebook (@CinPsyPod), or Threads/Instagram (@cinemapsych_podcast). We'd love to hear from you! Don't forget to check out our Paypal link to contribute to this podcast and keep the lights on! Don't forget to check out our MERCH STORE for some great merch with our logo and other designs! Legal stuff: 1. All film clips are used under Section 107 of Title 17 U.S.C. (fair use; no copyright infringement is intended). 2. Intro and outro music by half.cool ("Gemini"). Used under license. 3. Film reel sound effect by bone666138. Used under license CC-BY 3.0. Episode Transcription Go to this link to read a transcript generated by Whisper AI Large V3 Model. Disclaimer: It is not edited and may contain errors!
