Price$30.00
Media TypeDVD
CategoryClose Up
Date AddedNov 24, 2008
Attack Of The Copper Silver Coin
Cameron Francis and David Forrest
(Based on 1 review)
It all started several months ago when Cameron showed Dave a little procedure with a Copper Silver coin. Dave thought it was very cool and lo, a jam session did begin! By the end of said session both were in complete agreement that the Copper Silver coin may well be the most underused coin gaff extant! (Look it up!) So, further 'e-jams' took place and eventually a collection of Copper Silver material had been amassed - piled high like a big mountain of steaming coin magic! What to do with all this metallic material? "I know", said Dave "I'll get myself on a plane to the United States and we'll lay this shit down!!" So, that's what we did!
So what do you get when you buy this download? No less than TEN EFFECTS with the copper silver coin!! You won't believe how versatile this stuff is and - IT'S ALL BEEN TRIED OUT IN THE REAL WORLD!
EFFECT 1: WHERE EAGLES DARE. You take a signed coin and place it between two copper coins - you show it right up until the last minute - then, BANG - it's gone! The signed coin is removed from your pocket with completely empty hands. But, it could appear in even more impossible places with a little bit of thought! This one will fool you first time round - it's brilliant thinking!
EFFECT 2: OPPOSITES ATTRACT: A signed copper coin magically jumps to join a signed silver coin a number of times. For the finale, you place one coin in the spectators hand. Your coin vanishes and the spectator opens their hand to find….just one coin! But, wait - as she turns it over she finds that your signed coin has fused to her signed coin leaving a ridiculously impossible object! Out of the box thinking - brilliant strolling magic!
EFFECT 3: DOUBLE TRANSIT: The spectator signs a silver coin and a selected card - the coin is placed under the card. You take a copper coin and an indifferent card and in a blink - THEY BOTH CHANGE PLACES AT THE SAME TIME - you've now got the signed coin and the signed card and the copper coin and indifferent card are now on the table! Everything may be examined! Super visual magic with cards and coins!
EFFECT 4: SPECTATORS CHOICE: The spectator is given a completely free choice of either a copper coin or a silver coin. No matter what they say - the chosen coin instantly jumps to your pocket! You offer to repeat the effect with surprising results!
EFFECT 5: SIMPLE ALCHEMY: The trick that started it all! Three copper coins are displayed one at a time. Instantly all three change to silver coins! One at a time, you cause them to change back to copper and then again back to silver in a blink! Perfect walk around magic - super easy and super visual.
EFFECT 6: METAL SINK: Inspired by Bob Driebeck's 'Tosheroon' this is a super cool revelation of two playing cards using the Copper Silver coin. First a silver coin vanishes and reappears halfway down in the pack - the card directly beneath it is one of the selections! The silver coin is placed under the first selection. Then a copper coin vanishes and reappears -- it's definitely NOT in the deck! Where is it? The first selection is slid aside and underneath we find the copper coin! The card has also changed to the second selection! But where's the silver coin and the first selection? They are both found under the cellophane of the card case that's been on the table throughout! This is pure gold for the working performer!
EFFECT 7: METAL SINK TOO: A completely different handling of the above effect. The effect's a bit different too... you'll have to see for yourself but take my word for it - IT'S GOOD!
EFFECT 8: HEAVY MENTAL: A feature of Dave Forrest's lecture this could be the perfect 'carry everywhere' trick! You place a prediction on the table and lay out three coins under your hand. You ask your spectator to visualize a copper coin, a silver coin and a Chinese coin and decide on only one! No matter what happens you show that you knew what they'd choose all along. A nice neat pocket sized feat of mentalism!
EFFECT 9: MONEY BUSINESS: You display two business cards onto which you have a drawn a large 'C' for copper and a large 'S' for silver. The coins placed under them magically change in sympathy with the cards. A real multi phased fooler!
EFFECT 10: UP FOR THE CUP: Three silver coins travel invisibly, one at a time from your hand to a cup! When the three coins are tipped from the cup they are seen to have changed on the way into copper coins! For a finale, the three silver coins are removed from inside the empty cup!
NOTES: Props not included.
Running Time Approximately 2hr 04min
Reviews
(Top ▲)
Let first start off by saying that Cameron Francis and I are friends . . . thanks to that interweb thingie. Cameron has also contributed a few tricks for my monthly magazine, Stone Cold Magic Magazine.
Having said that, I've had this DVD for quite some time now. I was supposed to review it a long time ago. I was hesitant to review it because there were quite a few things about it that I did not like. However, my duty as a reviewer is to tell the truth . . . Blatant Honesty in a World of Deception, right? So here it is. Now I did rewatch it today in preparation for the review, and I will say that my opinion has changed slightly, but not entirely, so on with the review.
For $30 bucks you get 10 effects using the Copper/Silver gimmick plus an eleventh effect using the Copper/Silver "concept." You get a mix bag of coin-only plots, coin/card plots, a little bit of David Forrest and a little bit more of Cameron Francis. The video editing and theme or style of the video was actually really cool. It was done like a comic book telling a story of the abandoned prop (Copper/Silver Coin) that's made it's way to "Bertram" city to plot its revenge. The story line is quite fitting . . . The Attack of The Copper Silver Coin . . . it's as if these coins, seeking purpose, forced themselves into some relatively contrived coin plots.
The DVD felt a bit like they - Cameron in Particular - were looking for an excuse to use this excellent prop . . . who can blame them, however. It truly is a great tool, but I'm reminded of the old adage that if the only tool you have is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail. There were a handful of times where that's how it felt. Additionally, some of the plots were confusing and difficult to follow and even felt like they were kind of thrown together a few days before the DVD was shot.
However, on the positive side, there were also a couple of routines that were downright amazing and may even fully justify the purchase price. We'll discuss some in a moment. Before we do, however, let me also comment on Cameron and Mr. Forrest . . . there is a real chemistry between these two guys, and they clearly had a good time filming this project. They both are nice guys who are definitely skilled technicians, thinkers, creators and magicians. So anything negative I may say should not reflect poorly on them, but on this particular project.
Many of the effects were very awkward and fidgety and required a lot of pocket space (something in this pocket, then another thing in that pocket, etc). Plus there were quite a bit of times where you had to handle a deck of cards while holding out a coin or two . . . it just looked awkward. Additionally, a couple of the effects (namely: Where Eagles Dare, Opposites Attract, Double Transit used signed coins where stickers are placed on the coins (thus another prop to carry around).
The plot for these effects aren't strong enough, in my opinion, and are too fidgety for me. One effect ends with the two coins fusing together "creating" the Copper/Silver gimmick that you hand to the spectator . . . not a fan of that. Some of the effects had coins - in a very fidgety way - placed under this card or that card and coins and cards are "magically" (read: confusingly) changing places. I just felt, for the most part, that there was way too much prep work and stuff required to perform what I felt were relatively weak effects. Although, Double Transit was pretty solid. It could be a little confusing, but I think a bit of timing and choreography could solve that problem.
The effect Money Business was the epitome of the confusing, not-very-convincing, fidgety plots. It was just not a clean effect and not very solid, in my opinion.
Spectator's Choice has some potential, and the first phase is actually pretty good. It's a quick vanish of whatever coin the spectator names. But then it gets convoluted and confusing again with the next phase.
I notice that I tended to like Forrest's contributions better than Cameron's (sorry Cam - I still love you man!).
Simple Alchemy was actually pretty decent. Good plot, nice moves and magical looking. Up For The Cup is, hands-down, the best trick on the DVD, and one of the most magical coin effects I've seen in a long time. I really enjoyed it, and it was very, very, very magical looking on soooooooo many levels. It's more of a set piece, rather than strolling for sure, and it's not easy. You've got to be able to classic palm with both hands and you've got a lot of practice, timing and choreography to master, but soooooooo worth it.
Heavy Mental is my second favorite effect. However, considering that I'll likely never put in the time to master Up For The Cup and considering that Heavy Mental could easily enter my repertoire, maybe it's my first favorite, not my second. Internal debate aside, this is a simple and super powerful and surprisingly visual - in a cerebral way - piece of mentalism.
Finally, my 3rd (or 2nd, depending on how I end up resolving my internal debate) favorite is Cameron's Cleverly Constructed Colour Slide. The nice thing about this is that you don't need to buy a Copper/Silver gimmick, but you still get to employ that principle. This is a pretty visual effect and pretty simple to do, and it's relatively logical.
So that's the review of the tricks. Below I'll quickly give each one a 1 to 5 rating. I've explained myself as much as I'm going to. So if you see an effect below that I didn't explain above . . . sorry. I think you'll find that the low rated ones are addressed in my comments above in the sense that they'll likely have the same "concerns" as the other low ranked ones that I do mention by name.
Where Eagles Dare: (2)
Opposites Attract: (2)
Double Transit: (3)
Spectators Choice: (3)
Simple Alchemy: (3)
Metal Sink: (2)
Metal Sink Too: (2)
Heavy Mental: (5)
Money Business: (1)
Up For The Cup: (5)
Colour Slide: (4)
The only other complaint I have is a very common one I have with Full 52 Productions. The graphics, menu, editing, etc are always top-notch and incredible. But then, you cut to the performers and the lighting is dark, the film grainy and all around a stark contrast in quality to the rest of the DVD.
Taking the average of the tricks (2.9) coupled with some fun moments with Cameron and Forrest, minus out a bit for rough lighting, add back in a little for having 3 kick arse (That spelling is for you Forrest) effects, but docking a little for the price, and I think we end up with a 3 star gem with a very, very, very small "g."
Having said that, I've had this DVD for quite some time now. I was supposed to review it a long time ago. I was hesitant to review it because there were quite a few things about it that I did not like. However, my duty as a reviewer is to tell the truth . . . Blatant Honesty in a World of Deception, right? So here it is. Now I did rewatch it today in preparation for the review, and I will say that my opinion has changed slightly, but not entirely, so on with the review.
For $30 bucks you get 10 effects using the Copper/Silver gimmick plus an eleventh effect using the Copper/Silver "concept." You get a mix bag of coin-only plots, coin/card plots, a little bit of David Forrest and a little bit more of Cameron Francis. The video editing and theme or style of the video was actually really cool. It was done like a comic book telling a story of the abandoned prop (Copper/Silver Coin) that's made it's way to "Bertram" city to plot its revenge. The story line is quite fitting . . . The Attack of The Copper Silver Coin . . . it's as if these coins, seeking purpose, forced themselves into some relatively contrived coin plots.
The DVD felt a bit like they - Cameron in Particular - were looking for an excuse to use this excellent prop . . . who can blame them, however. It truly is a great tool, but I'm reminded of the old adage that if the only tool you have is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail. There were a handful of times where that's how it felt. Additionally, some of the plots were confusing and difficult to follow and even felt like they were kind of thrown together a few days before the DVD was shot.
However, on the positive side, there were also a couple of routines that were downright amazing and may even fully justify the purchase price. We'll discuss some in a moment. Before we do, however, let me also comment on Cameron and Mr. Forrest . . . there is a real chemistry between these two guys, and they clearly had a good time filming this project. They both are nice guys who are definitely skilled technicians, thinkers, creators and magicians. So anything negative I may say should not reflect poorly on them, but on this particular project.
Many of the effects were very awkward and fidgety and required a lot of pocket space (something in this pocket, then another thing in that pocket, etc). Plus there were quite a bit of times where you had to handle a deck of cards while holding out a coin or two . . . it just looked awkward. Additionally, a couple of the effects (namely: Where Eagles Dare, Opposites Attract, Double Transit used signed coins where stickers are placed on the coins (thus another prop to carry around).
The plot for these effects aren't strong enough, in my opinion, and are too fidgety for me. One effect ends with the two coins fusing together "creating" the Copper/Silver gimmick that you hand to the spectator . . . not a fan of that. Some of the effects had coins - in a very fidgety way - placed under this card or that card and coins and cards are "magically" (read: confusingly) changing places. I just felt, for the most part, that there was way too much prep work and stuff required to perform what I felt were relatively weak effects. Although, Double Transit was pretty solid. It could be a little confusing, but I think a bit of timing and choreography could solve that problem.
The effect Money Business was the epitome of the confusing, not-very-convincing, fidgety plots. It was just not a clean effect and not very solid, in my opinion.
Spectator's Choice has some potential, and the first phase is actually pretty good. It's a quick vanish of whatever coin the spectator names. But then it gets convoluted and confusing again with the next phase.
I notice that I tended to like Forrest's contributions better than Cameron's (sorry Cam - I still love you man!).
Simple Alchemy was actually pretty decent. Good plot, nice moves and magical looking. Up For The Cup is, hands-down, the best trick on the DVD, and one of the most magical coin effects I've seen in a long time. I really enjoyed it, and it was very, very, very magical looking on soooooooo many levels. It's more of a set piece, rather than strolling for sure, and it's not easy. You've got to be able to classic palm with both hands and you've got a lot of practice, timing and choreography to master, but soooooooo worth it.
Heavy Mental is my second favorite effect. However, considering that I'll likely never put in the time to master Up For The Cup and considering that Heavy Mental could easily enter my repertoire, maybe it's my first favorite, not my second. Internal debate aside, this is a simple and super powerful and surprisingly visual - in a cerebral way - piece of mentalism.
Finally, my 3rd (or 2nd, depending on how I end up resolving my internal debate) favorite is Cameron's Cleverly Constructed Colour Slide. The nice thing about this is that you don't need to buy a Copper/Silver gimmick, but you still get to employ that principle. This is a pretty visual effect and pretty simple to do, and it's relatively logical.
So that's the review of the tricks. Below I'll quickly give each one a 1 to 5 rating. I've explained myself as much as I'm going to. So if you see an effect below that I didn't explain above . . . sorry. I think you'll find that the low rated ones are addressed in my comments above in the sense that they'll likely have the same "concerns" as the other low ranked ones that I do mention by name.
Where Eagles Dare: (2)
Opposites Attract: (2)
Double Transit: (3)
Spectators Choice: (3)
Simple Alchemy: (3)
Metal Sink: (2)
Metal Sink Too: (2)
Heavy Mental: (5)
Money Business: (1)
Up For The Cup: (5)
Colour Slide: (4)
The only other complaint I have is a very common one I have with Full 52 Productions. The graphics, menu, editing, etc are always top-notch and incredible. But then, you cut to the performers and the lighting is dark, the film grainy and all around a stark contrast in quality to the rest of the DVD.
Taking the average of the tricks (2.9) coupled with some fun moments with Cameron and Forrest, minus out a bit for rough lighting, add back in a little for having 3 kick arse (That spelling is for you Forrest) effects, but docking a little for the price, and I think we end up with a 3 star gem with a very, very, very small "g."