Two young men embark on a three-year odyssey, treading the unconventional path of becoming career magicians – and that’s just the opening act. Miles, who suffers from mental health issues, finds magic as a form of self-medication, while Devonte considers it a path out of his former gang member life. Their idols range from David Copperfield to David Blaine (the latter of whom appears in one of the film’s most beautiful scenes), but their practical mentors are the older men who hang out at Rogue’s. A magic shop on the desolate Queen’s Boulevard, Rogue’s is somewhere ex-gang members and kids from broken families have found to hang out, make connections and change their lives. Ultimately, Miles and Devonte learn to use their magic to express both pain and joy, and use their art to tell compelling stories about real life in the communities that made them.
