This is one of those reviews where I wish there were more than five ratings, as my true rating would
have been a 3-1/2. But being that I got this as part of a Cool Box special, and that it's near
Christmas, I'll round up. This is a two-disc set, and I'd rate the first a three and the second a
four.
The production quality of the DVD was excellent, which isn't surprising considering
the production quality of a Franz Harary performance.
The first DVD includes next to no
magic, and instead spends about 90 minutes telling you how hard it is to produce a show while being
challenged by culture, weather, budget, language, scheduling,personalities, etc. I got that message
clearly from the trailer and really didn't pick up much more from my 90 minute investment.
Things picked up on the second DVD, which was all footage from the actual show. He had some
impressive illusions that rivaled Copperfield, including one that he ended up selling to
Copperfield.
But it was the DVD commentary track that I both found most interesting and
most disappointing. He got into his magic philosphy a bit, which I found interesting, but was
awfully stingy when it got to methodology. He said he would be talking in "code," lest the DVD fall
into the hands of any non-magician. But the extent of his coded revelations was that to vanish a
silk in his hand, he "used a 'tip' if you know what I mean."
Yes, we know what you mean.
And for a DVD that was marketed by a magician to magicians, I really expected more, if you know what
I mean.
3 of 3 magicians found this helpful.
Quite a hectic ride and definitely worth a watch if you've been interested in staging a large stage
show.
I wish there was more rehearsal stuff on it as it seemed to concentrate on the staging
problems more than the magic, but on saying that, I did enjoy watching this DVD. It's more of a
production getting set up DVD than magic being shown.
The show DVD was OK, but I wish it had the
full show on it rather than just the TV special.
I found it interesting and I'm pleased I
got it.
Also a quick shout out for Penguin Magic's great service. Thanks