The Magician

When Melbourne hit-man Ray Shoesmith discovers that his next-door neighbour is a film student, he commissions him to document his life - the footage is to be released à la Pauline Hanson in the event of his early death. Australian filmmaker Scott Ryan is writer, director and star of The Magician. It's not the violence that Ryan focuses on, but the conversation, the banalities and intensities of human interaction and obsessive interest in detail. The film shows us what makes Ray tick as we witness first hand his brutal efficiency. It's a fake documentary played straight. It's darkly comic and totally draws you in, to the point where you wonder if it's real. It's Ryan's marvellous performance that serves as the glue that holds everything together. His character is a killer, a man who'd as soon pull the trigger as not, but without smoothing out any of the rough edges the actor makes you like him when what you should be feeling is utter loathing. And that's no small achievement. Scott Ryan has a gift for the Aussie vernacular that ensures his remarkable debut (think Chopper meets Spinal Tap) is destined for cult status.

Although it isn't magic he uses, not unless you count a count as a wand. He is a hit-man, working in Melbourne, and this documentary style film recounts a few of his jobs. The condition imposed on film-maker Max is that he won't release the film until after Ray's death.

It is a strange film, but very enjoyable. The style is used to allow Max to question Ray about his actions. To have an outsider looking in wondering can Ray tone down the violence, or how much would he want in order to eat his own excrement. Did I forget to mention this is a comedy? The focus of the film is all on Ray. The rest of the characters are just their to provide him with something to interact with. And Max, the cameraman is never shown un-pixelated on screen, to protect his identity from the police no doubt. And Scott Ryan gives an excellent performance as the almost charming hit-man. His sense of timing is perfect and his delivery of the lines is spot-on. Of course he did write and direct it, so he should know everything about this character, but it is still a wonderful role.

It is almost a buddy road movie, with Ray, Max and a possible target traveling across Australia to locate some money. There is a great discussion about Wayne Carey and whether sleeping with your vice-captain's wife could ever be regarded as merely a mistake. Probably more likely to turn out to be a cult hit than a blockbuster, if you get the chance you should try to catch this film.

The Magician is not as bad as some boring reviewer said it is. I didn't feel a lull at any point in the film and thought there were undercurrents of depth to do with Melbourne drug culture and dealing. The mundanity of it. The darkness. And a lead who is surprising in many ways. "A fascinating and attractive man" as Max says! Of course, you really do need to be familiar with Melbourne to get the street scenes. And Australian to understand conversations about Big M's and Wayne Carey. And is there anything wrong about making films for ourselves? And is there anything wrong with a filmmaker just getting out there and making something with no money, to get some experience, all for the love of it? NO! I hope this gives Scott Ryan a good go in the industry.

This is a low or even no-budget film, and does suffer from some non-professional elements. However, for what it is, it's a really engrossing film that is both original and captivating. All of the actors are quite good, none seem to be acting and all possessing a natural presence necessary for the mockumentary to work. Some scenes are genuinely laugh-out-loud funny; others, should have been cut except then the 86 minutes running time would even be less. A movie about a hit-man needs to have more violence, and the Magician suffers from being too talky. Scott Ryan though really deserves credit, seemingly channeling Robert Carlysle as Begby. I think this is something like Clerks or Evil Dead that upon first viewing isn't overwhelmingly impressive but could gain cult status and gain a loyal fan base.

I had to check this out because we love, love -loved Mr Inbetween. So , this precursor or inception of Ray feels like we are watching him as a youth, but there is more to it. I have never been to Australia but I can so relate to the environment. He brings it right to us . He is such a gifted guy . This stands alone and while I can't speak to the order of watching ( if you remotely like this ) you can't watch one without the other Imo. If you are a film buff or a couch cartoon-binger ( I happen to be both) this construct makes an excellent addition to a repertoire and for a highly satisfying watch.