Product Details

• Actors: Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, Torin Thatcher, Angela Clarke, Stefan Schnabel
• Directors: George Marshall
• Writers: Harold Kellock, Philip Yordan
• Producers: Frank Freeman Jr., George Pal
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Paramount
• VHS Release Date: April 8, 1991
• Run Time: 106 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6301954807
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,875 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Tony Curtis will amaze and astound you with one of his best performances as Harry Houdini, "the man of 10,000 tricks." Houdini has nothing up its sleeve, but the charismatic Curtis and Janet Leigh ("Hollywood’s Most Exciting Young Lovers," proclaims the film’s original trailer, the sole bonus feature on this disc), as Houdini’s wife, Bess, levitate this conventional, albeit enormously entertaining 1953 biopic that follows the legendary magician and escape artist from his days as a sideshow attraction to international stardom. Houdini dedicates his life to giving audiences "bigger and bigger thrills," and the film’s best scenes recreate Houdini’s act and death-defying escapes, including a harrowing plunge into the frozen Detroit River while locked in a trunk. Houdini’s fate is well-known, and while the film plays loose with the facts, it does conjure up an eerie foreboding by the time he takes the stage for his final, ill-fated Halloween performance. After Houdini’s first strait-jacket escape, an elderly magician urges him, "It’s isn’t a trick. Drop it. It will make you famous, but it will kill you." At long last available on DVD, Houdini is old fashioned movie magic that’s no trick and all treat.--Donald Liebenson

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Houdini" finally reappears, on DVD!, May 12, 2008

By	Glenn M. Schoditsch (Richmond, Virginia USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Houdini (DVD)

Finally this cinematic treasure comes to DVD. While sometimes not historically accurate, it does portray a young Ehrich Weiss and his passion for the art of escapism & illusion and his love for his wife Bess. Real life husband and wife couple, Tony Curtis & Janet Leigh are more than convincing as "The Great Houdini" and his stage assistant.

This delightful film will bring enjoyment to legions of fans of old like myself as well as a cursory enlightenment of Harry Houdini for newer generations.

Filmed in 1953, "Houdini" is presented in Technicolor with an Aspect Ratio of 1.37:1. A very family friendly movie, recommended without reservation.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Long Time Coming, April 12, 2008

By	Robert A. Glover (Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Houdini (DVD)

Remembering this movie as a child and finally it has made it to DVD. What took the studio so long? I am sure that I am not the only person asking that question? Although not true to the real life of Houdini the film is a fun and entertaining piece of work that at times will keep you fixed to the screen. Giving it a five star rating and suggesting that it be watched by all members of the family so that a new generation of people can enjoy its magic.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars George Pal's Magician Among the Spirits, July 16, 2004

By	Michael Ziegler (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This romanticized look at the career of Harry Houdini played with charm by Tony Curtis is full of the mysterious "other worldly " effects that George Pal made his reputation on in productions to come. In several scenes, Curtis taps into the Spirit world to...escape from a straight jacket, find the hole to get out of the frozen Detroit river, and seek out an experienced peer to solve the "Man in a Bottle" trick. He also manages in the process to stigmatize Halloween forever as a "bad omen" and gives new meaning to a Mother complex greater than Richard Burton's in "Alexander the Great". Still, the movie is a marvelous dose of "entertainment" and the sets are superb, there is a great veteran supporting cast and the screenplay is well written. This was a VERY popular movie and Tony Curtis does a great job in the role, even though there is a lot of deviation from the real Harry. It needs a DVD polish and presentation of extras with trailers and perhaps some interviews. It would be interesting to hear from Tony Curtis about this film after all these years. Good family fun!