This DVD was interesting in a few different aspects. Until I saw this DVD I had never heard of Jack Curtis before and now that I have, I think I will look further into his offerings based on this DVD alone. Here is why:

On this DVD you will see and learn six different mentalism effects. I will first give a brief description of each effect and then discuss the contents of the disk after.

Amnesic Transpo - This to me was one of the two best effects on the DVD with lots of possibilities on which objects to use for it. Seasoned card workers will be very familiar with the plot and the method, but the wording of the script and the way it is played makes it so much stronger. This effect is a transposition between two business cards, just like the ad says. There are lots of very strong two card transpositions out there (Cards Up the Sleeve by Victor Farelli, Be Honest, What Is It by Eddie Fechter, etc.), but this is a perfect example of how a few carefully laid words can make a strong effect (or make relatively weak effects) even stronger.

Floral Destiny - This was an interesting effect that if you get the desired "hit" the first time, it will slay audiences. Yes, it works every time because even if you do not get the ideal "hit" the first time, there is another phase that you insert into the effect to get to that desired "hit". It is really hard to say anything more without possibly giving it away. It is essentially a prediction with a coincidence kicker.

Extra Subliminal Persuasion - In my mind this was the weakest effect on the DVD, and it is certainly nothing wholesomely new. Jack did a good job in routining this one. You have five envelopes with standard ESP cards inside. The envelopes are shuffled and one is chosen. A sticker on each card predicts the selection every time. If you so desire, you can change which symbol is chosen - it does not have to be the same one every time.

Blank 2.0 - This is also nothing really new under the sun and there are some similar effects out there however, the handling is quite different from most of them and the kicker is unique. A number is freely named and the card at that position is found to be the only regular card in a blank deck. The freely named number is also shown to have been previously predicted.

Law of Attraction - To me, this is the other top effect on the DVD. This one is also not horribly new in idea, but the presentation makes it different, and VERY strong! After I watched this DVD I went to one of my restaurant gigs and did this effect 5 times that night (it is very easy to do) - it FLOORED the patrons and it got a lot of gasps and great reactions. It does not use playing cards but fits into the plot where one playing card finds another, whether it finds its mate or one selection finds another. Again, the presentation really makes this very strong if done correctly.

Silver Lining - This is a very cool idea that can be done in just about any venue and performing situation. It does take a little bit of time to perform, but if you work on your acting and get the timing down just right, this will be a very strong effect. It is extremely easy to do and it is reminiscent of predicting the outcome of a Tic-Tac-Toe game, only this is more of a gambling effect with coins where you predict the outcome of the entire game at the end.

None of the effects on here are groundbreaking, but they are definitely worth looking into. If you are a more seasoned magician, you will probably be able to tell how most of the effects are done, or at the very least, some of the effects themselves will look familiar to you. Do not let that disappoint you because in the case of the effects on this disk, it is the wording and presentation that makes them, in my opinion, better than some of their origins. As I said before, some of the effects on here are not new in idea, but the way they are worked out, handled and presented are.

The only effect for which I did not work out the method (or at least part of the method) that Jack used was Floral Destiny. I came up with something different, but his was better.

There are no "live" performances in the way that the term "live" is usually defined. The performances all take place with three or four spectators and participants at a time standing around a table on a stage in an empty theater. I just found it funny that Jack said in the opening that "In case you do not know me, my name is Jack..." but he knew the names of each person without asking. Not that this makes any difference - just a strange thing. Altogether the group of spectators changes, but there is still three or four at a time.

The explanations take place on top of what looks to be a closed grand or baby grand piano, in a studio, hosted by Jack and professional mentalist Looch. One of the annoying aspects of the camera work here was a light that was behind Jack would glare into the camera every time he moved far enough to the side. This did not create a poor picture or a washout at all, it was just an annoyance. Looch did not seem to necessarily contribute much of anything to the explanations, but he does chime in here and there with opinions and ideas for each effect.

The explanations were very clear and everything was well-taught. In some of the effects as he explains them, I found a good number of moves or certain things I would handle differently that would not change the outcome or the appearance of the effect at all - just my personal preference. You may also find this is true for you.

For some of the effects, Jack gives you alternate ways of doing something or further ideas for exploration of those effects and the ideas behind them. Be sure to pay attention to the scripting of the effects on this disc - the scripts are very key to getting the fullest potential punch out of each one.

There is a bonus section on this DVD which was okay. It did not contain any more effects, but there was a blooper real (quite funny but it does contain strong language, and it warns you of such), two PDFs on how to approach a table and another with thoughts on using the term "prediction", a short discussion on why Jack thinks playing cards should have a place in mentalism and then there is a clip of a performance-only effect. If you have been in mentalism for a while, you should be able to work out how he does the performance-only effect - it is very nice but I would not say infinitely practical in every situation.

The video also starts out with a copying, sharing, public performance, duplication, etc. disclaimer which was worded, in my opinion as a non-native English speaker, quite confusingly. It requires you to click "select" if you agree to the terms. I understand what it meant after a few run-throughs and asking English-speaking friends for clarification. Those that I asked also said that they think it could have been made clearer by wording it differently.

The menu is really easy to use and well-laid out. The production quality is fantastic - crisp, clean and clear video and audio and easy to understand. The ad copy is truthful, including the claim that all of the effects are 'instantly resetting'.

In my opinion, I think $37.25/USD is just a tad high for what you get, though the material is strong if done as presented. I would say $35 would have been a better mark.

All in all, if you are into mentalism or would like to get into it, this DVD will give you some great ideas to play around with and think about. Nothing on here is hard to do and all of them use basic, simple, recognizable, cheap and easy-to-obtain props.

With the lack of a true "live" performance, the occasionally annoying backlight and the slightly high price, I give this four stars - well done Mr. Curtis!