Customer Reviews

Magic [VHS]

5 star:		(47)
4 star:		(26)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Richard Attenborough's 1978 opus MAGIC is a minor masterpiece of cinematic horror that, while oft overlooked, arguably helped pave the way to the slasher craze of late '70s and early '80s (it was released within a mere month of John Carpenter's now better known HALLOWEEN). Though Attenborough and scripter William Goldman--who adapted from his own identically titled bestseller--play down the grislier slasher aspects of the novel, they do generate genuine psychological terror with the help of an outstanding performance from actor Anthony Hopkins (yes, THAT Anthony Hopkins, who would later leave a bigger mark on horror cinema portraying another fictional loon, the infamous Hannibal Lecter). Excellent supporting performances from Ann-Margaret, as Hopkins' love interest, and Burgess Meredeth add to the believability and, in turn, the scare factor of this delightful genre gem.

Hopkins portrays Corky Withers, a painfully shy but talented magician who overcomes his stage fright and ignites a meteoric rise to fame when he takes on a sidekick--an extroverted and bawdy ventriloquist's dummy he names Fats. As Corky's act becomes more and more popular and draws the attention of big-time agents and Hollywood brass, introverted and insecure Corky allows the artificial Fats personality to take control. And Fats will do anything--ANYTHING!--to help Corky keep his split personality a secret.

True, the plot of MAGIC is not totally original. Not only had a few cinema offerings already told the same basic story--1929's THE GREAT GABBO and a segment of the 1945 British anthology DEAD OF NIGHT, to name a few--but TV's ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS (in an episode entitled "The Glass Eye") and THE TWILIGHT ZONE (in a segment called "The Dummy") also featured startlingly similar subject matter. Still, MAGIC has two things going for it that make it rise way above the miasmic story line--the superb dramatic (and, surprisingly, ventriloquistic) talents of Anthony Hopkins, and a scene featuring the eye-poppingly gorgeous bare [...] of the beautiful and talented Ann-Margaret. Seriously, though, the performances in MAGIC, especially that from Hopkins, make the worn plot seem compelling and fresh--not that Ann-Margaret's naked [...]don't add a certain allure--and fans of the horror and thriller genres who haven't seen the film already should definitely seek it out.

Fortunately, the new DVD release of MAGIC from Dark Sky Films makes it easier than ever for genre fans to see this cinematic jewel. Not only does the disc offer a pristine widescreen digital transfer made from original 35mm negatives, it also offers some pretty cool bonus material. Included are a featurette in which ventriloquist Dennis Alwood, who was a consultant on the film, discusses the challenges in creating the Fats dummy and in tutoring Anthony Hopkins in the art of ventriloquism; interviews with Mr. Hopkins; TV and radio spots in both English and Spanish; and much more.

In short, 1978's MAGIC is a great horror flick that, unfortunately, has been eclipsed by other more sensationalized genre films from the same era. But thanks to the folks at Dark Sky Films, horror fans can now see a near-perfect copy of this wonderful film, and serious genre fans will definitely want to add the DVD to their collections.

Anthony Hopkins stars as Corky Withers, a ventriloquist/magician with a pathological fear of failure. When his life starts to become surreal, he looks up the girl he secretly loved in high school, Peggy Ann Snow (Ann-Margret), and, with the help of his wiseguy dummy, Fats, sparks fly between them. But Corky's agent (Burgess Merideth) worries that Corky thinks Fats is real, thus setting off a deadly chain of events.

Anthony Hopkins is utterly convincing as the fearful and hallucinating ventriloquist. His manic performance is dynamite; he will break your heart and send chills up your spine. Ann-Margret is good as the cheerleader turned haus frau, but doesn't look dowdy enough. Ed Lauter gives an excellent performance as her brutish husband. Burgess Meredith plays the sophisticated and worldly agent with regal aplomb and almost steals the show.

William Goldman's script is thrilling without resorting to gore, and the soundtrack, which is often simply a discordant harmonica solo, adds to the spookiness. I thoroughly recommend "Magic" to fans of Anthony Hopkins and psychological thrillers; you will not be disappointed.

For 1978, this movie had its scary moments. Sir Anthony Hopkins and Ann-Margret did a wonderful job in Richard attenborough's adaptation of William Goldman's classic. Lucky for me, I still have the un-edited version on cassette. What I remember most about this film was Corky, the ventriloquist going slowly insane, due to schizophrenia, and romancing his childhood sweetheart, Peggy Ann Snow. The love scene between Anthony Hopkins and Ann-Margret was passionate and beautiful, if not a bit steamy. Nevertheless, the scene was executed well and came out right. Some of the more frightening moments in the film were also executed well. Corky using Fats to kill his agent and Peggy's husband are fine examples. As was Corky going completely insane in the end. I, too, remember the commercial for the film, and it did not bother me as much. Magic was a very good film. The soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith was really ominous and haunting. It would be great to see Anthony Hopkins and Ann-Margret work in another film together.

I've never been so bone-chillingly afraid of ANYTHING in my life. When I was six, the TV spots, known to me & my sisters as "The Dummy Commercial" aired during our nighttime television viewing time. The first exposure left me petrified. Each succesive airing made me run as far from the TV as possible. In recent years I collected the nerve to rent the film on VHS, hoping for some kind of reckoning with 'Fats'... but the mood of the film was bland compared to my intensely frightened memories. Now, at last, the film with all the press material, including that startling TV spot is available on DVD. My heart thumped in my chest as I brought home this DVD and explained to my roommates the significance of what they would soon watch with me. I made them leave the room as I cued up the spot, turned off the lights and asked them to be seated. I started the commercial and watched both of my 30+ roommates freeze. I confronted that harshly lit face and did not look away. I studied every detail. As a 33 year old man, I'm still afraid of the 'Dummy Commerical'.

This review has nothing to do with the above pictured videotape edition of this film. If the other reviews are to be believed (and I see no reason why they shouldn't) this tape contains a cut version of "Magic" which I must nay-say on general principle. And now back to Matt's life:

I first saw this movie at about the age of six or seven when it premiered on network television. Of course I'd already been intrigued and frightened near to death by the super-creepy t.v. spot that ran in 1978 (kudos to other reviewers here for reminding me of that little gem after twenty-some years). While the film in no way dissuaged my intent on becoming a professional magician and ventriloquist, it did spook me pretty good. Now, after over a decade, I finally decided to revisit the past.

While the film certainly isn't great, it is nowhere near as bad as some people would have you believe. It also does not approach the level of banality to which Mr. Hopkins has, in recent years, apparently resigned himself. While I have never been old Tony's biggest booster, I think a case can be made for his performance here. If nothing else, the role is the perfect showcase for his acting style and those who go into the film loving him will only love him more. Ann-Margret does a good turn as Peggy-Ann Snow and Burgess Meredith trots out his usually excellent curmudgeon bit. While the whole dummy/ventriloquist personality swap is nothing new to the genre ("Dead of Night" as well as a Twilight Zone episode starring Cliff Robertson come to mind as but two forerunners), this film is nonetheless dark, bleak, menacing, creepy, powerful and very scary. It's not perfect. The love scene between Ann and Tony is even yuckier today than it was when I was five. It is, however, worth a good deal more attention than it has been alotted in recent years. I'm praying for a DVD with the t.v. spot to hit the shelves very soon.

Some interesting points to watch out for:

*William Goldman's dialogue is just as fast paced and witty as anything David Mamet has ever written and really shows his chops as a screenwriter.

*David Ogden Stiers (whose presence pretty much guarantees watchability in any scene he happens to be in, though here he is only in three).

*Ed Lauter (if you don't know the name you surely know the face. Rent "True Romance" or, if you're into bad movies, "Death Wish 3." The guy plays the same hard ass over and over, but does it better than anybody.)

*Check out how closely Corky's face resembles Fats in the scene where he waits for Peg to pick up the wooden heart. Probably the scariest shot in the film.

*The scene where Ben challenges Corky to keep Fats quiet for five minutes is undoubtedly brilliant, but is closely followed by the scene where Fats really exercises his control. Corky screams with a migraine then crawls around on the floor on his hands and knees in a sicko-psycho-Simon-Says game with the dummy.

*Peg's closing line is, I think, supposed to be her own ventriloquist character voice. I always thought it was a dubbing flaw, but now I don't believe so. It's a very weird way to cap the film.

*Check out how Corky's entrance in the final scene with Fats mirrors his entrance in the opening scene with Merlin, his ailing mentor. There are several similarities and ironies not the least of which is that in both cases Corky is relating false events of what just happened to him.

As I say, not a perfect flick, but hopefully the above list will tickle your fancy enough to give it chance. And if anybody out there knows anyone at Twentieth Century Fox, please exercise some influence and get this puppy on a DVD. Thanks.

For some inane reason every time I think about the film Magic (1978), that song `You Can Do Magic", by the group America, gets stuck in my skull on a continuous replay loop (`You're the one who can put out the fire')...argh...anyway, back to the film, which is based off a novel of the same name by William Goldman (Marathon Man, The Princess Bride), who also provided the screenplay here, directed by actor turned director Richard Attenborough (A Bridge Too Far, Gandhi), and stars Anthony Hopkins (A Bridge Too Far, The Elephant Man, The Silence of the Lambs). Also appearing is Ann Margret (Carnal Knowledge), Ed Lauter (The Longest Yard), and the late, great, perpetually crusty Burgess `Buzz' Meredith (Rocky, Clash of the Titans, Grumpy Old Men), who's always been one of my favorite actors ever since I saw him on the old Batman movie as the villain character The Penguin ("How was I to know they'd have a can of shark repellent Bat-spray handy?").

As the film begins we see a painfully nebbish magician named Corky (Hopkins) bombing miserably on stage during a club's amateur night appearance (no stage presence + an indifferent audience = lots of flop sweat). Afterwards Corky, who suffers greatly from an overwhelming sense of insecurity, gets a piece of advice from his ailing mentor in that he needs something to draw the audience in, that being charm. A year passes and Corky's playing the same club, but this time it's a packed house...seems Corky's found his charm in the form of a foul mouthed, smart aleck, extroverted ventriloquist dummy named Fats, who is a really creepy, exaggerated caricature of Corky himself (they even wear the same outfits). Anyway, Corky's act proves popular enough for his crusty yet savvy agent Ben Greene (Meredith) to generate interest from a television network, but the mounting pressure eventually drives Corky to split town and head home to the Catskills. Upon arriving he makes the rounds (the old homestead, the cemetery, etc.) before renting a funky cabin by a lake, owned by a woman named Peggy (Margret), whom Corky went to high school with so long ago and harbored a serious crush on...seems Peggy is married now, to her high school beau Duke (Lauter), but both are more or less going through the motions as the union has deteriorated significantly over the years. Anyway, Corky schmoozes it up with Peggy real good (you never fully get over those high school crushes) while Duke is away, resulting in a renewed sense of self confidence, but the feeling is short lived once Ben makes the scene and quickly realizes his client has some serious issues...some seriously bad things happen, Duke returns home, and things get progressively worse, all leading up to a monumental meltdown as Corky struggles with the formidable will of his wooden partner.

In one of the featurettes included on this DVD a man named Dennis Alwood, who's listed as the `ventriloquial consultant' on the film, provides a number of facts about this feature, some of the more interesting ones being that Norman Jewison (In the Heat of the Night, Fiddler on the Roof) was the original director attached to the project and Jack Nicholson (Chinatown, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest), the original choice for the role of Corky. Well, Jewison dropped out (for whatever reason), as did Nicholson (apparently Jack refused to wear a hairpiece required for the role), and so, eventually Attenborough was hired to direct. The production was still without a male lead, so Attenborough turned to Hopkins (on the stipulation he could provide an American accent), whom he'd previously directed on the film A Bridge Too Far (1977), which, by the way, is an excellent WWII drama worth seeing if you're interested in that sort of thing. Also, Sir Laurence Olivier was in line for the role of Ben Greene, but due to illness he had to pull out, and so the role went to Burgess Meredith. Given these various elements one can't help but wonder how different the film might have been had the principle cast and crew remained in place, but know, despite the changes, this turned out to be an exceptionally creepy and entertaining thriller with some truly horrific sequences. Hopkins is amazing, not only in his role but also in his slight of hand abilities. I don't know if these were skills he'd previously possessed or if they were developed during the course of filming, but they add immeasurably to the credibility of his character. The other standout for me was Burgess Meredith, who played Ben Greene, Corky's agent. Meredith was one of those performers who, while in character, made you believe without a doubt he was truly the character he was playing. Such is the case here as was true in Rocky (1976), which he played the lead character's tough as nails manager. The best scene, for me at least, was when Corky was arguing with Fats in the cabin, as Corky was falling for Peggy. As the two are going back and forth, Corky notices Ben standing at the door and two things happen...Ben realizes there's something seriously wrong with Corky, and Corky feels the fear that comes from exposure of his dual personalities. Both result in a very creepy scene as Corky tries to convince Ben it was all part of a rehearsal for his act, but Ben, along with the audience, knows better. The overall intensity builds significantly after this as Corky becomes unglued and subsequently subjugated to the more powerful will. As truly frightening as I thought this film was, I only wish I could have seen it when I was a lot younger, as I'm sure it would have resulted in some really funky nightmares, given the level of psychotic energy that comes off the screen. If you're looking for an exceptionally intelligent, unnerving cinematic experience I'd highly recommend this one as it comes through with the psychological chills. The build up is slow, but the payoff is rewarding, and where else would you get to see a half nekkid Ann Margret? Homina, homina...

This Dark Sky Films DVD release features an excellent anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) picture along with a solid Dolby Digital 2.0 mono audio track. There's a number of interesting extras on the disc including an entertaining featurette titled Fats and Friends (26:52), which has ventriloquist Dennis Alwood speaking extensively on the history of ventriloquism, along with talking about his experiences working on this film. There's also a twelve-minute interview with Victor J. Kemper, the cinematographer on the film, who also supervised the transfer of the film onto this DVD, a three-minute radio interview with Hopkins, an Ann Margret make-up test (1:18), a gallery containing photos and promotional materials for the film, the original theatrical trailer, four television spots, three radio spots, and English subtitles.

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Corky (Anthony Hopkins) a failed magician hits the big time with his ventriloquist act featuring the foul mouthed Fats. When fame comes knocking at his door Corky's world begins to unravel when a major network wants to give him a deal but insists that he undergo a medical examination. His new found fame begins to overwhelm him so Corky returns to his hometown and starts an affair with a crush from high school (Ann-Margaret). It quickly becomes evident to his manager (Burgess Meredith)that Corky is mentally unbalanced.

A riveting thriller "Magic" met with hostile critical reaction when it was released despite a strong script by William Goldman ("Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "Marathon Man", "All the President's Men")from his novel, agile, suspenseful direction by Sir Richard Attenbrough and an incredible performance from Anthony Hopkins. This re-release on the Dark Sky Home Video label features a stunning brand new transfer from the original 35 milimeter negative for the film. The film is presented in its original widescreen aspect ratio that's been enhanced for 16X9 Television sets. It's a pity it hasn't been remixed for 5.1 Dolby Digital but its possible the original soundtrack elements may not exist any longer.

Additionally, Dark Sky has produced a number of attractive extras for this terrific edition. "Fats & Friends" is a nearly 30 minute featurette on the film providing background on the history of ventriloquism and plenty of behind-the-scenes stories. We find out for example that Jack Nicholson was originally going to be cast opposite Laurence Olivier in the film and with a different director (Norman Jewison). "An Interview with Victor J. Kemper" the cinematographer on the film features plenty of behind-the-scenes information on the making of the film as well and it runs just over 12 minutes. We also get a vintage radio interview with Anthony Hopkins playing behind bloopers and cut sequences from the film. We get a second interview with Anthony Hopkins as well as Ann-Margret's silent make up tests shot for the movie as well as a photo gallery and the original theatrical trailers two in English and two in Spanish with radio ads. The interactive menu echoes the original chilling commerical that played on TV when the film premiered and is highly inventive and disturbing.

Sir Anthony Hopkins performance in this movie was simply amazing. Why haven't they released this movie on DVD yet? I was only 6-years old when this film was released back in 1978 and I will NEVER forget the short, yet effective television commercial that ran briefly for this film (those of you who remember it know what I'm referring to!). It wasn't until I was nearly a teenager when I finally saw 'Magic' for the first time, but even then I didn't have the maturity to really appreciate or understand the psychology behind it all. James Hetfield, lead singer of the band 'Metallica' was so inspired by this film that he wrote a (rather disturbing) song about it called 'Sad But True.' Unfortunately, this film has been out of production in any format for quite some time now, but If you're interested in learning more about the film's content and eerie musical score (that accordian still creeps me out!) you can check out some of the VHS reviews here at Amazon (some of them are a little too revealing though, I think). I can only hope that this buried classic is one day transferred beautifully to DVD. Lets give Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ann Margret, and Burgess Meredith the respect they truly deserve for their performances and release the full, unedited, theatrical version of this film already!

I could not have done this DVD better myself. Being one of the skeptics of this release, being one who has treasured the film, way back from an edited for tv broadcast to the full length Embassy Video on Beta (!) to a laserdisc to a really sorry but beautiful looking vhs of the edited for tv version. I have been probably this films biggest champion. My friend told me this DVD was coming out and passed for fear that this was just another rehashing of the "Clean" Edited version. Well I saw what great extra features were on it and I thought Ok. Give it a shot. I was worried because who has ever heard of Dark Sky films? I thought surely 20th Century Fox would have put the proper version.
But from the main menu to the Fats and Friends Documentary to the fact that this is the full length 107 uncensored version, I have been in a surreal state of Bliss. Finally having a definitive version of this movie. Even all the posters and lobby cards I collected are here in the photo gallery! The conversation with the Ventriloquist supervisor for the film was excellent. Fats himself even makes a personal appearance in the discussion! Funny stuff guys. Ok go buy it, and yes I do feel that leaving the film's soundtrack in 2.0 was a good decision. If IT ain't broke don't fix it.
Thank you Dark Sky films

"Magic" is a great thriller with big stars, and based on a novel by a popular author. For some reason, critics jeered it when it was first released, and it apparently dropped off the face of the earth. As a last resort, I bought this tape, but found the viewing conditions were very bad. It's better than nothing, I guess, but the sex scene was edited and the language dubbed out, just like on television! This particularly hurts the final line of the film, which includes a certain four-letter word. Nonetheless, it's a disturbing and very funny thriller with great performances. Buy this video anyway, it may be your last chance to see this movie, ever.