Price$35.00
Media TypeDVD
CategoryClose Up
Date AddedMar 29, 2007
Impact
Michael Paul
(Based on 1 review)
Spectator Cuts the Aces:
The spectator really makes a fair cut into the center of the pack, and actually finds an ace. No gaffs, duplicates, crimps, or strange cutting proceedures... and it's easy. This is how spectator cuts the aces should look. Impromptu.
Four Ace Production:
Easy to set up and remember, here is an ace production that actually works well in the real world. Produce three aces from the pack visibly, the fourth mysteriously appears in the most surprising way... on the table, and in full view.
Card to Shoe:
A signed playing card vanishes from in between the spectator's hands and re-appears wedged into the toe of your shoe. No set up or switches... the card that comes out of the shoe is actually the signed card. Do this with any card, any shoe!
Coins Across:
A coin routine with maximum spectator involvemnet and maximum magic, including a very visual vanish and a coin to spectator's hand that will bring you powerful reactions.
Reality Displacement:
A signed playing card instantly jumps from the center of the pack to your hand. Less like a card trick and more like a camera effect, Reality Displacement will have you and your audience doing a double take. This one has to be seen to be believed.
Initial Burn:
A total stranger selects a card, signs it, and loses it back in the pack. Now, a small piece of paper is marked with her first initial and placed on top of the pack. You set fire to it, and it vanishes... when the cards are spread, one card is burned... and the burn is in the shape of her first initial. It is her signed card. Do this for anybody, and leave them with a souvenier they will keep forever! Meet your new closer.
Totally Triumphant:
A complete three phase card act that leaves the deck in new pack order! Get ready to take your triumph routine to a new level... without adding difficult moves or fancy set ups.
Michael Paul's clear and easy teaching style is supplemented with this state of the art DVD. Each effect has multiple viewing angles so you can choose what you want to see. A second, complete audio track for each effect also gives you Michael's additional commentary and information for the advanced performer. It's almost like an extra lecture on the material!
Running Time Approximately 60min
Reviews
(Top ▲)
I'm starting on a tangent inspired by the choice of costume and background for this DVD. The author is dressed in a Chinese-inspired outfit with a rack of traditional Chinese weapons hanging on the wall behind him. This choice was never addressed on the DVD, so I'm going to take it as a point of inspiration.
I've been practicing Shao-lin kung fu for many years. There's an interesting parallel between modern "kung fu" and modern magic. I put "kung fu" in quotes because most of the martial aspects of the arts were lost in the Cultural Revolution. The true martial arts masters either fled China or were forced to stop teaching (sometimes by being "permanently silenced").
As a result, most of the martial arts coming out of China (and across the globe) is actually wu shu… essentially flowery performance without any martial power.
Magic seems to have taken a similar turn over the past decade. So much is simply visual poetry without power.
Personally, I love watching wu shu performances. I don't care that they'd be ineffective in a battle. I also love watching (and sometimes performing) purely visual magic.
The content of this DVD is mostly wu shu magic. Mr. Paul has chops. His technique is well-polished. The methods are interesting and, at times, quite wonderful. I'm not sure if the magic will inspire an audience, but they will likely be entertained.
A lot of the material is what I call "variations on variations." It's up to you and your presentation style to decide if the variation is better or worse than the original. If he's doing routines that you already do, or would like to do, then give this DVD a try. You might find something you like.
I only feel the need to comment on one routine in detail. Spectator cuts aces. On one level, it's quite unique because someone else does actually cut the aces. Unfortunately, this leads to some serious discrepancies in the revelations. Sometimes the card is on top of the packet on the table. Sometimes it's at the face of the cut-off portion. Why it's one place one time and another place the next is never addressed in performance. Sometimes you cut the cards, sometimes they do. Why? It was very confusing for me.
I would also suggest that you listen to the performances, sans video, before you adopt his "scripts". I'm not saying they're good or bad. Just make a conscious, fully-informed choice before adopting his presentation.
The DVD production was a mess. The DVD contains several special features, including multiple angle views and an commentary audio track. Unfortunately, the instructions for using these were almost impossible to understand. I grokked it after a minute or two… and I'm a tech geek.
Beyond that, some of the camera work was horrible. It was jerky and sometimes not even centered on the effect. Even if you're providing separate camera angles, the default angle should be sufficient to see what's going on. There were several times where the background noise made it almost impossible to hear what he was saying.
There was nothing for me on this DVD. That's not to say there won't be anything for you.
If I ever meet Mr. Paul in real life, I'd love to compare notes on the Kwan Tao.
I've been practicing Shao-lin kung fu for many years. There's an interesting parallel between modern "kung fu" and modern magic. I put "kung fu" in quotes because most of the martial aspects of the arts were lost in the Cultural Revolution. The true martial arts masters either fled China or were forced to stop teaching (sometimes by being "permanently silenced").
As a result, most of the martial arts coming out of China (and across the globe) is actually wu shu… essentially flowery performance without any martial power.
Magic seems to have taken a similar turn over the past decade. So much is simply visual poetry without power.
Personally, I love watching wu shu performances. I don't care that they'd be ineffective in a battle. I also love watching (and sometimes performing) purely visual magic.
The content of this DVD is mostly wu shu magic. Mr. Paul has chops. His technique is well-polished. The methods are interesting and, at times, quite wonderful. I'm not sure if the magic will inspire an audience, but they will likely be entertained.
A lot of the material is what I call "variations on variations." It's up to you and your presentation style to decide if the variation is better or worse than the original. If he's doing routines that you already do, or would like to do, then give this DVD a try. You might find something you like.
I only feel the need to comment on one routine in detail. Spectator cuts aces. On one level, it's quite unique because someone else does actually cut the aces. Unfortunately, this leads to some serious discrepancies in the revelations. Sometimes the card is on top of the packet on the table. Sometimes it's at the face of the cut-off portion. Why it's one place one time and another place the next is never addressed in performance. Sometimes you cut the cards, sometimes they do. Why? It was very confusing for me.
I would also suggest that you listen to the performances, sans video, before you adopt his "scripts". I'm not saying they're good or bad. Just make a conscious, fully-informed choice before adopting his presentation.
The DVD production was a mess. The DVD contains several special features, including multiple angle views and an commentary audio track. Unfortunately, the instructions for using these were almost impossible to understand. I grokked it after a minute or two… and I'm a tech geek.
Beyond that, some of the camera work was horrible. It was jerky and sometimes not even centered on the effect. Even if you're providing separate camera angles, the default angle should be sufficient to see what's going on. There were several times where the background noise made it almost impossible to hear what he was saying.
There was nothing for me on this DVD. That's not to say there won't be anything for you.
If I ever meet Mr. Paul in real life, I'd love to compare notes on the Kwan Tao.