Product: Magic [VHS] (1978)
Rating: 5.0
Magic.......
The 1978 film Magic is one of Anthony Hopkins earlier movies and, after watching this, it is plain to see why he is the master of doing suspenseful psychological thrillers. Directed by Richard Attenborough, Magic starred Anthony Hopkins, Ann Margaret, Burgess Meredith and David Ogden Stiers. Written by William Goldman, it told the story of 'Corky' Withers who fails at his first attempt at professional magic. Coming back a year later with "Fats", Corky does well on the circuit. When his agent tries to sign him for his own TV show, when it is mentioned he has to take a physical- Corky quickly declines and bails out. Yet, the truth is, he doesn't want them to find out that he suffers from Multiple Personality Disorder and he hears "Fats" talking to him. Once in the catskills, he meets up with an old flame-Peggy Ann Snow(Ann Margaret) who is in a marriage on the rocks. They both start up a relationship, which leads to the both of them making love & sparks the jealousy of both Fats and Peggy's husband Duke. That's when the fur starts to fly and the story gets even deeper.It's been said that, when the movie's trailer first aired, parents claimed that it gave their children nightmares. The trailer itself featured Fats reciting a poem(Abracadabra, I sit on his knee. Presto, change-o, and now he is me! Hocus Pocus, we take her to bed, Magic is fun...we're dead.") after which his eyes roll back in his head. It's followed by a cast reading, then Fats opens his eyes and gazes to his left.Siskel and Ebert loved the film and placed it at #9 on their top 10 list of great movies for that year. I, personally, loved the movie myself when it first came out and I still watch it from time to time now.If I had any gripes about the movie, it'd be that Corky and "Fats" die at the end. I know that it ties in with what takes place in the book but it would have been cool to see a second film based on the characters. Alas, it wasn't meant to be...which is a real bummer. At any rate, Magic is a great movie. Definitley on my top 10 favorites of all-time.