Magicians

I rented this movie from blockbuster on a whim .. i like alan arkin and the cover was catching ... i read the back and knew right away it was going to either be the best or the worst movie i have ever seen ... i guess i got lucky .. i laughed from beginning to end .. alan arkin brings a great character to this movie. i have since bought a used rental copy for my own collection and watch it all the time .. i have recommeded this movie to loads of people and they all enjoyed it as much as i did ... i see complaints about the menus and dvd functions .. but it doesn't take away from the movie .. the disk was authored for Blockbuster exculsivley which is why they didn't allow you to skip past the previews .. aside from that you shouldn't let the functions of the DVD to deterr you from watching the excellent film.

I stumbled across this DVD at my local Blockbuster and was pleasantly surprised with the production qualities along with the acting. The script was a little weak in places but overall it is a nice little fun film about a couple of would be magicians, their assistant and mentor (Alan Arkin)who travel to Las Vegas to make it big.

Being a magician myself, I got a kick out of the film and what these people go through.

I viewed this movie in DVD format. My copy may have been affected but I was disappointed with the lack of menu screen for the DVD. I will say that my initial reason for viewing this movie was Claire Forlani. While fun to watch, I feel she didn't live up to my expectations that I have so far found from her other films. I actually was equally pleased to see Arkin turn in a humorous performance. The other two actors I wasn't very familiar with so I can't compare their performance, however they were fairly enjoyable also. The acting is the only endearing quality of this movie in my opinion. The story line, while some could say slightly compelling, lacked direction. I feel that the main problem stems from the script and not the direction of this film. If you enjoy any of these actors to a fair extent then I recommend this film, but otherwise leave it alone.

I keep a "list" of movies I want to see, and somehow - I don't exactly recall - "The Magicians" ended up on it. While it had a cute concept, and some good actors, it just didn't "work" for me. A lot of the scenes looked like they were shot on a set, a look not unlike "One From The Heart", that abomination of a film made by Coppola in 1982, entirely on a soundstage. "Magicians" even used cute "roadsigns" on a miniature set looking like a road into Vegas for the opening credits. I saw it on DVD - no digital sound source, no menu, no extras, perhaps the poorest DVD I've seen so far.

The biggest gripe I have with the story is this -- Hugo is a masterful thief, and that's how the movie starts. Then he steals a van for 4 of them to go from NYC to Vegas. The movie ends up with all of them apparently happy, smiling, with no restitution for the crimes. A clear message that it is OK to be a thief, as long as you are charming. To me this is a serious flaw, and part of the reason I can rate it no higher than "5".

The bulk of the movie is about these 4 flawed people getting together to make an act and make it big in LasVegas. Max (Til Schweizer) is flamboyant but without much talent. Hugo (Fabrizio Bentiviglio) is a "loner" who hustles a living as a pickpocket and grifter, has amazing talents but just wants to be left alone. Lydia (Claire Forlani) is the cute, blonde waitress who has "nothing to lose" by quitting her job and becoming a magician's assistance. Milo (Alan Alda) manages magic acts and sees potential, especially in Hugo.

They head out west, and develop their magic act "on the road", usually in the evening at the motel stops. The film is a comedy. The magic act is not very good. The combination of characters is like mixing oil and water. There is a humorous encounter with a cop looking for the stolen van. The actors did as good as they could with the script, but this writer/director is just not up to the standards being set by the better ones. Although this film can be enjoyed by certain people, I believe it has very limited appeal and could not in clear conscience recommend it to anyone.

I'm a bit of a movie snob, and admittedly, this is in the Godfather or even some Woody Allen classic, but this is a really funny movie and it's also quite heartfelt. It's a real shame that this is basically impossible to find. I'm lucky to still have a used DVD from Blockbuster, but would love to see this streaming somewhere. If you come across it and you like bazaar comedy, I highly recommend this movie.