Wonder(stone)ing

Last night I re-watched “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” (on HBO...)

With all due respect to any alumni involved in his forgettable movie, it is only (sleightly) saved by 

acceptable performances from Steve Carell and Jim Carrey. 

There are some fun cameos and the occasional reference will keep fast company attentive (“your Zarrow shuffle is sloppy”) IMO: Overall, this flick was a disappointment. 

So, why am I mentioning it? 

Well, it provided the incentive to reflect on a reflection that has stayed fast in my theory closet (say what?)  

These thoughts deserve more than the brief mention I’ll be delivering here. Perhaps some day I’ll spend the time to record a full mental dump, but for now a few sentences will have to suffice.

To make a long story short: 

One of the ‘Wonderful’ things about our craft is that there are so many ways to do things right. 

Whether its a full fledged sensory attack (Ala David Copperfield) or a few mumbled words (Ala David Blaine) at the end of the day, time has proven there is no ‘right’ answer when it comes to presenting the conjuring arts.

You can be fun-funny or stern-serious, amazing or skillful, suave or sloppy, it all works. 
From Mac King to Max Maven, Darwin Ortiz to Lennart Green, ( or even obtain cult icon status with unique approaches of Criss Angel or David Blaine)

One need only briefly consider the differences of these performers & then wonder how they all have reached a pinnacle of their chosen perspective. I could make a dozen different references to make my point, but a look at your personal favorite magi should provide all the mindset you need. 

While many magi are constantly in search of the right way to approach performing, they really need look no further than in front of their eyes.. 

Who really decides what is the correct approach to performing magic? 

I’ll tell you who: your audience.

& its an endgame that begins with a vision of what you want to share.

Yes, everything and more has a home in our Wonderful artform, all you really need are two things:  

#1 A Point of View 

 #2 The desire and drive to deliver #1

Or you can be an inferior imitation of someone else...

hmm

First step: the important thing is to think about it at all.

finis (or the beginning for many.)

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Oh, if you haven't seen it

(if you'd like to see a great magic movie: I recommend the Prestige (a wonderul Chis Nolan flick) or The Illusionist (starring Edward Nortan in a fantastic role.... in fact, I think I'll watch that later today ;)

Prestige

The Illusionist

wow, the full movie is here;

As far as Magi-Comedies go, if you're a magician, you're likely to enjoy the english comedy "The Magicians" (availble on Netflix at the time of this post) you'll find much more real magic , cameos and the like... I'm not really recommending it, but if you're choosing between this and the average sitcom, 'the magicians' is nearly equal in entertainment value (also currently on Netflix is the outstanding Ricky Jay Documentary: Deceptive Practices.)

Last but not least (and only last because I'm sick of typing)

Now You See Me is another Magi-Flick worth a look