User reviews

Sir Richard Attenbourough does a fine job directing this film about a magician that has little charm, personality, or self-confidence who must take a dummy into his act to let himself become famous. The only trouble is that the fine line that exists between the dummy and the ventriloquist becomes much too fine. Anthony Hopkins is really good as this shy, awkward man slowly descending into a world of madness as great success looms over the horizon. Hopkins also does the voice of the dummy, Fats, and lends his unique voice talents to create a very disturbing, eerie screen presence. The dummy is in many ways larger than life, and he steals almost every scene he is in. No supernatural puppet coming to life here, yet the character of Corky(Hopkins) gives his life to this dummy in a very unique way. The film is suitably creepy with some very atmospheric shots. As one reviewer noted, the scene where Hopkins is to not speak through the dummy for five minutes is easily the best. Each moment of that scene passed with incredible tension. It is downright chilling in fact. The other actors do very well. Burgess Meredith is made out to be much older that he was at the time, and I think he did a fantastic job. What can I say about Ann-Margaret. Stunning. She does a credible job acting, and let's face it, she looks like a million bucks(she even shows us more than expected as well). A spooky film, and a great screen performance by a much younger Anthony Hopkins.

This somehow has become a forgotten movie which seems odd that after the subsequent success and recognition of Anthony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs that more people didn't look back at his 1978 performance in this psychological/horror gem. William Goldman has quite a record of novels being adapted to film or screenplays by him which include No Way to Treat a Lady, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Stepford wives, The Great Waldo Pepper, All the Presidents Men, Marathon Man, Misery and A Bridge Too Far among other memorable films. Actor/Dirctor Richard Attenborough who is notable for directing Ghandi, Chaplin and A Bridge Too Far teams up again with Goldman to bring us Magic. Anthony Hopkins as the ventriloquist also provides the voice of his menacing dummy. Bergis Meredith turns in a great performance as usual as well as Ann Margaret. This is Hopkin's film though and he is superb in lead role. I saw this in the theater during it's initial release and have only seen it once since then. Don't know why this doesn't make on TV more often. I would give this an 8.0 out of 10 and recommend it.

Ventriloquist "Corky" is about to hit the big time when he starts to realize fame and fortune isn't all it's cracked up to be. He retreats to a lakeside cabin owned by the woman he fell in love with as a teenager but things turn nasty. He is suffering from schizophrenia and uses the dummy to voice the things he can't bring himself to say. This is done superbly and Anthony Hopkins plays it all extremely convincingly. Ann-Margret puts in a mostly believable performance too although at times she seems a little unlikely. It doesn't detract though, her screen presence adds a lot to the movie and she looks radiant as ever. For a while when watching this film I had a horrible feeling that the dummy would turn out to have an intelligence of its own and would start walking around with a knife in its little wooden hands. Thankfully this doesn't happen and it's a much more sinister and impressive film for it. Overall this was surprisingly watchable, well made and at times genuinely scary. The violence is filmed well and doesn't resort to bloodfests to get the message across. One of the few 70's horror flicks I've seen with good acting and a credible plot, well worth watching!

I liked Magic. Its a far more sophisticated movie than Child's Play, Bride of Chucky and other unrealistic horror movies with doll's taking on a life of their own. In fact, Magic is less horror and more a study of a deeply disturbed man. Hopkins is the shy unsuccessful magician who creates an alter-ego in the form of Fats, his puppet. Together, the magician and Fats make for a very successful act and the magician starts to achieve notable success. When asked to give a health test in order to sign on for a lucrative TV deal, he refuses and runs away. He stays at an isolated island as a paying guest with his now unhappily married college crush - played by Ann-Margret. As romance starts to blossom, the Fats side of Hopkins personality also starts to take over.

Magic reminded me of The Wicker Man - a low budget but chilling Brit horror flick. To be honest, I thought Magic was the better of the two. The similarities it shares with Wicker Man are low budget, reliance on atmosphere, relative realism for the horror genre, a macabre performance by the leading man Hopkins/Christopher Lee respectively and an isolated setting close to the sea. Magic draws the viewer in more because of Hopkins performance which shows likability and vulnerability. 60's sex symbol Ann-Margret, a talented actress, has yet another small role that completely under utilises her.

I can't understand the reason for the low rating on IMDb and obscurity of this film. Even after Hopkins carved out a name for himself in the celebrated horror movie Silence of the Lambs, this was never revisited.

Long before The Silence of the Lambs, there was an Anthony Hopkins that had hair and earned a BAFTA and Golden Globe nomination for his performance as a magician.

Hopkins was magnificent as a man who gave over his personality a dummy. It was so well done, that you actually thought the dummy was having a conversation.

Burgess Meredith was excellent as his manager. There was that same attitude that he displayed in Rocky.

Ann-Margret was splendid as the girl he loved in high school and returned to after 15 tears.

A well-acted and spooky film.

This was one of the first films I ever saw that absolutely creeped me out as a kid; I hadn't seen it in years and just caught it recently on Bravo, and I have to say that it still gives me the willies! Anthony Hopkins's performance is nothing short of remarkable (he's a great Lechter, but really, his first Oscar nod SHOULD have been for this film); his scenes with Fats - and the voice he provides for the character - still make my flesh crawl. If you can get past the low production values, and hang in there past the first 15-20 minutes (plus if you can actually find this in a video store), you're in for a pretty frightening psychological ride. Hey, DVD distributors, somebody pick this one up (and get a commentary track with Hopkins, Attenborough and Ann-Margaret!)

Strangely neglected at the time of its release, this is a creepy and sort-of black humored character study of a man who, basically, splits his personality in two halves; imagine Norman Bates with a dummy fixation instead of a Mommy fixation and you get a general idea what is in store. The scene where Burgess Meredith asks Anthony Hopkins to make the dummy stop talking for five minutes is worth the price of admission. Plus you get brief glimpses of Anne Margaret's bare breasts!

On the whole the plotting reminds me very much of a Jim Thompson novel. Not at all typical of the work of Director Richard Attenborough...unless to remember that as an actor in 1970 he portrayed real-life British Serial murderer & necrophiliac John Christie in TEN RILLINGTON PLACE (which was actually filmed in the exact house where the real-life killings took place!)

The ventriloquist dummy is a popular horror prop; ever since Dead of Night in 1945, the ventriloquist dummy has popped up in a number of films; and Magic is one of the most classy and high quality. However, it's not necessarily one of the best; as while the acting is good and Richard Attenborough manages to create just the right tone and atmosphere for the film; something about it severely lacking. The tagline bills it as a 'love story', and this would appear to sum up Magic's problems - it doesn't really know what it wants to be! The relationship between the ventriloquist and his dummy is build up as antagonistic until the very end, and by then it feels out place. The plot focuses on Corky; a magician who isn't all that good. But when he teams up with a wooden dummy named Fats; the crowd begins to love him. However, the fame starts to go to him and he soon finds that he can't turn the dummy 'off'. He goes and finds his high school sweetheart, and the two start to get on well; but it's not long before his fame comes looking for him, and the dummy shows its murderous side.

Anthony Hopkins is clearly one of the acting greats; and while this film came earlier than his more memorable performances in movies such as The Silence of the Lambs and The Elephant Man, it's still obvious that Hopkins is a master of his trade. The film comes across as a high quality piece, but somehow this doesn't apply to the plotting, as there are some very questionable character actions and events, and while this may be OK in another film; the fact that this one obviously wants to rise above the low quality horror films means that it's hard to ignore. Magic isn't particularly nasty; there are a couple of death scenes, but the blood is kept to a minimum, and again this seems like Attenborough was trying not to make the film seem cheap and tacky. Most of the horror comes from the dummy; Anthony Hopkins does Fats' voice and it's not far from being the most piercing and haunting horror vocal of all time, which is the film's main credit. Overall, Magic certainly isn't a bad film; it's worth watching for sure, but unfortunately it's not as great as it could have been.

Richard Attenborough's Magic (1978) is an exceptional work of cinema that has so much to offer to the viewer at different levels. It features Anthony Hopkins in the role of a shy ventriloquist named Corky Withers. Corky's act in which he uses a dummy to perform on-stage magic tricks is an instant success. Corky is at height of his fame and probably a single step away from becoming an icon. But, things are not as simple as they appear. Believe it or not, but Corky's dummy Fats has developed a mind of its own! And Corky must learn to control it before it's too late.

Anthony Hopkins, I daresay, delivers the best performance of his life. The role of Hannibal Lecter may have elevated Hopkins to apotheosis but Corky has a sense of vulnerability that makes it appear far more realistic than Lecter. A comparison between Lecter and Corky is inevitable for both the characters lie on the brink of insanity... while the former can control it to a great extent the latter is always at the mercy of his vicious alterego. Magic (1978) is a psychological thriller of the highest quality. And Hopkins' sublime portrayal makes it an experience of a lifetime. Ann-Margret is brilliant in the role of Peggy Ann Snow. Burgess Meredith as Ben Greene virtually steals every scene that he is a part of.

Magic (1978) is indeed magical. And the dream-like combination of two great Englishmen, Richard Attenborough and Anthony Hopkins, makes it possible. A necessary watch!

http://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/

Hopkins is better in this than "Silence of the Lambs" and he was great in that! I would give him best actor for this role he scared me in this, he was chilling.

Give it a good vote so others might think it is worth seeing. They won't be disappointed, at least I was not.

Richard Attenbourough has directed an intriguing and creepy little psychological thriller about a schizophrenic ventriloquist who 'splits' his identity with his dummy. Attenbourough has given a lot of attention to the setting creating an atmospheric effect such as the silent gloomy lake (inhabited by snapping turtles) and Corky's lonely cabin. The cinematography, particularly the closeups, are very impressive. 'Magic' is a simple film and while many have assumed that it's a horror film where the dummy is expected to become some kind of horrific entity (as I thought), that is not the case. Anthony Hopkins gives a stunning performance as the complex, shy and lonely Corky who finally finds love and his manipulative dummy Fats. There are so many moments of his excellent acting. Some examples include the scene where Corky is subjected to 'stop being Fats' for 5 minutes, the boat sequence and Hopkins's scenes with Ann Margret. Though he is more recognized for his 'chilling' Hannibal Lector persona, 'Magic' definitely showcases one of his best performances. The sexy Ann Margret also does an excellent job as the love of Corky's life. She brings a lot of depth to Peggy and she shows more than expected. Burgess Meredith leaves a mark as Corky's concerned manager. Overall, it's nice to see a different kind of Attenborough film. One that is quite well made and very well acted.

Richard Attenborough, known for his classy (but especially long and tedious) epical films, directs a tense thriller with horror undertones?? Sounds like a Disney film brought to you by Quentin Tarantino! But surprisingly enough, Attenborough knows damn well how to bring the unsettling and eerie tale of a ventriloquist who slowly loses his sense of reality and starts to live through his dummy. Too bad he can't resist stressing the drama and sentiment even more. For every suspenseful sequence in 'Magic', there's a dull and pseudo-psychological anti-climax following.

The opening sequences of 'Magic' are terrific! Through flashback and a conversation with his mentor, we see how Corky (Anthony Hopkins) struggles and fights to make it as a magician/stage performer. The transfer to his all-of-a-sudden successful career as a ventriloquist comes rather abrupt and it's hard to believe. Yet, you don't bother about this too much as the dialogues are good and Hopkins' performance is outstanding. He can't handle the pressure and flees to the countryside where he meets his long-lost high school dreamgirl. Meanwhile, he becomes more and more obsessed by his voice tube-dummy Fats. The idea of evil ventriloquist dummies might not be new (The Great Gabbo, Dead of Night) but 'Magic' is neatly elaborated and very well-acted. Unfortunately, it hurt seeing Ann-Margret so underused! She has a relatively small part and all Hopkins ever talks to are her bosom! Nicest line in the whole movie: 'Your breasts belong in the Louvre, which is a museum in France and I'd love to visit it with you!' That's great! I have to keep that in mind and use it as a pick-up line someday!

Excellent central idea is diluted by the drama elements which are introduced into the story. These were presumably an attempt to broaden the films appeal - something of a trend in American horror films of the late 1970's - but they ultimately prove detrimental.

Anthony Hopkins is a neurotic ventriloquist who finds himself increasingly coming under the influence of his dummy. He gives a convincing performance of a man losing his grip and realising he is powerless to stop it. His descent into madness provides the strongest horror elements of the film - scenes where Fats the dummy is in human-mode tend to be less plausible, although he does remain a sinister force throughout.

With Hopkins as the star and Richard Attenborough directing, 'Magic' has gained in reputation following their subsequent elevation to 'A' status. Certainly these two heavyweights bring enough touches of quality to raise the film above the mediocre, without ever giving it touches of real brilliance, despite one or two genuinely scary moments.

Film follows the theme seen in 'The Great Gabbo' (1929) and 'Devil Doll' (1964) - though most famously a ventriloquist's dummy featured in the classic British horror anthology 'Dead of Night' (1945).

I have passed on this film several times in the past, and people told me it was better than I thought, so I gave it a try. I was amazed how great it was, Anthony Hopkins has never had a character with more energy, this was before he started playing rather boring characters. Although the film does have some plot holes, and there are some unintentional laughs(especially the death of Ben Greene, I couldnt keep a straight face), but Anthony Hopkins is so good he overpowers all of the weaknesses of the film. The film made over 40 million dollars at the time of release, and thats quite a lot for 1978, Im surprised the rating isnt higher, and that it doesnt have more votes. My rating: 7.5 out of 10.

While I admire Richard Attenborough the actor, I am not as enthusiastic about his work as a director. This is his best work as a director probably because as a good actor he realized the potential of the story that survives on the acting skills of the lead player. Attenborough's job was easy once he had a consummate actor in Anthony Hopkins to play the key role and provide the distinct voice of the dummy.

This film's highlights are the performances of Hopkins, Burgess Meredith and Ann-Margaret, in that order. Hopkins has matured over the years and in recent films like "Hannibal" and "Silence of the Lambs" is arresting to watch. Yet in "Magic", Attenborough is able to extract a superb performance in an otherwise above-average film.

The sequence between Hopkins and Meredith, where the dummy has to keep quiet for 5 minutes is the highlight of the film. Equally interesting is the editing (by John Bloom) of the two knifing sequences. To sum up, the acting, the low-budget direction (superior compared to "Gandhi" and "A Bridge too Far"), and the editing are the departments that are commendable in this film.

This neglected film does not deserve to be neglected. In fact, it might even be one of Hopkins's best performances on film. Moreover, I even think it probably is even better than Hopkins's Oscar-winning turn as Hannibal Lecter in "Silence of the Lambs". The reason I say that is because Hopkins's in the latter film was rather hammy and way way over-the-top but then maybe that was the kind of performance the director wanted. But Hopkins's performance in "Magic" is understated almost to the point of numbness and yet that is what I felt was so brilliant about it. The scene where Hopkins's manager, Burgess Meredith, forces Hopkins and the dummy not to utter a single word in the space of five minutes is one of the single most suspenseful scenes ever committed to celluloid. And although the time goes by slowly, the suspense keeps building and building and you can actually see the inner pain that expresses itself onto Hopkins's face. That scene alone is worth seeing the picture for. And while I love Ann-Margret, she is basically window dressing here but then who cares when she is so great just to look at anyway.

Apologies for the above summary since it was too good to miss out on an awful pun . If I were to give an honest one word summary for MAGIC it would be " Bizarre "

This a very bizarre film . I am somewhat puzzled by the IMDb classing it in the horror/thriller bracket because it's not really , it's more of a black comedy centered around stand up magician Corky whose life is taken over more and more by a ventriliquist dummy called Fats

There are some good aspects to William Goldman's script . The pacing is nice , the dialogue is good while we're also treated to a very witty scene as Corky relates his first night on stage as the action flashes back to a very uninterested audience . However there's no way I could take seriously the central idea of some guy doing card tricks getting any type of crowd adulation or being on the brink of stardom because he introduced a dummy into his act . " Hey you gotta love this guy " - No we don't ,, how can you love someone who sticks his hand up a puppet's bottom for a living ? It's bad enough the entertainment business has to suffer David Copperfield and David Blaine . Can you imagine what they'd be like with Rod Hull's Emu on their arm ?

Like the script the directing is rather uneven in execution . Richard Attenborough manages to get good performances out of his cast , Anthony Hopkins accent might flit back and forth but he manages to give some indication he's well on the way to becoming one of Britain's greatest living character actors but the inequality of Attenborough's directing of MAGIC can be best summed up with the scene in the boat house with Corky and his agent who tells Corky not to use Fats for 5 minutes . The agent opens the door to leave and the tension is defused when we see that the river and trees outside are a very obvious painted backdrop

Still despite all this it's better than CHILD'S PLAY

William Goldman adapted his own novel, a melodrama about an unstable ventriloquist comedian--not exactly a winning match-up. Anthony Hopkins gives an agonizing actors' performance playing a magician/ventriloquist who revels in a sort of naughty burlesque style; however, at this stage in his career, Hopkins seemingly had no good humor in him (nasty or otherwise), nor did glum director Richard Attenborough, who has seen too many movies and replicates old suspense. This isn't "Dead Of Night", this is more like "Night Gallery" (and one of the weaker episodes!). "Magic" pulls nothing new from its hat, although Ann-Margret plays a former crush very sweetly--she's a welcome relief to all the perspiring and twitching Hopkins heaps upon us--and Burgess Meredith does his wily old coot bit to perfection. The dummy, Fats, is made to look like a Hopkins caricature; he's kind of freaky, yet his intrusive manner is decidedly off-putting. This is a gimmick movie without much of a gimmick, just a bunch of timeworn ideas. The low-keyed, solemn finale--just as gloomy as the rest of the picture--is more perplexing than thoughtful (mainly due to Ann-Margret's dialogue being poorly recorded), and is apt to leave viewers feeling disenchanted and maybe resentful. ** from ****