Everything is real in this film. Also the magic. Or, precisely the magic. The central figure is of course the magician. It is Bosco Francis, who is also the real Bosco Francis and hence also a magician in real life. All the characters in this film are real in this way. The son of the magician is his son and not a child star, and maybe we shouldn’t ask what the gangsters are in real life. Especially the tricks by the conjurer are stunning and also occasionally painful to see. The master magician is a Tamil and the stories about sword swallowing and beds of nails are also real, it’s now apparent.
But there’s also a story, and we have to assume it’s fictional. A true melodrama, even. We find the magician at the end of his tether. His wife has left him and he has to look after his 10-year-old son on his own, but basically the boy looks after him, because the father has succumbed to King Alcohol from despair. Ultimately, he literally ends up in the gutter, but then he decides to take control of his own life. However, he offers his art to the wrong bosses and after a brief revival things go from bad to worse.
Not everyone can appreciate the combination of authenticity and pure magic, which is a pity because the film convincingly exploits the primeval source of cinema. (GjZ)
Film details
- Country of production
- Singapore
- Year
- 2008
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2009
- Length
- 75'
- Medium/Format
- 35mm
