talkmagic.co.uk

Sorry for the rather over-exagerated title, but i didnt want you to all sigh and turn away without giving this thread a look

I just wanted to see if we could fairly establish why many mature magicians (not the media brainwashed ones that is) generally have a distaste for Blaine and both his character and magic performances.

Now i am not passing a judgement i deem to be the general consensus, i have just noticed that in the general opinions of all serious magicians Blaine is a media icon and over hyped showman.

Yes, he may have a very bleak and tastless attitude/persona, and he may do pointless endurance stunts but is he really that bad?

I personally think that he is very passionate about what he does, but he is just misunderstood in his purpose. His subdued attitude suits him pretty well in my opinion. I think that several of his endurance stunts are pretty remarkable even though they are not 'magic' as such. His magic may be pretty under performed and rather media magnified but overall, he does a pretty good job don't you think?

I want to see what judgement we can arrive at regarding his magic ability, his personality and how deserving he is of his fame.

Discuss.

Sk8r St3v3 wrote:Sorry for the rather over-exagerated title, but i didnt want you to all sigh and turn away without giving this thread a look

I just wanted to see if we could fairly establish why many mature magicians (not the media brainwashed ones that is) generally have a distaste for Blaine and both his character and magic performances.

Now i am not passing a judgement i deem to be the general consensus, i have just noticed that in the general opinions of all serious magicians Blaine is a media icon and over hyped showman.

Yes, he may have a very bleak and tastless attitude/persona, and he may do pointless endurance stunts but is he really that bad?

I personally think that he is very passionate about what he does, but he is just misunderstood in his purpose. His subdued attitude suits him pretty well in my opinion. I think that several of his endurance stunts are pretty remarkable even though they are not 'magic' as such. His magic may be pretty under performed and rather media magnified but overall, he does a pretty good job don't you think?

I want to see what judgement we can arrive at regarding his magic ability, his personality and how deserving he is of his fame.

Discuss.

I just don't like him. I don't like how he 'performs', I don't like his personality, I don't like that he clearly uses camera tricks, I don't like his shameless self promotion as some sort of 'extreme endurance guru', and I don't like his haircut either. So, apart from that, he's great.

Len

I think a large part of it is jealousy

Must admit, I don't really care for the guy myself. Too much reliance on store-bought props.

I must, however, point out that he does possess good misdirection skills (an absolute requirement for things like CTW).

He seems more geared towards the 'stunt' presentational approach, that is to say, short effects with little or no plot, little or no meaning, and little or no magic (as opposed to shock/ wow factor).

From what I understand, he's a (failed) actor first, and a magician (only just) second. IIRC, he went to actor school before getting into magic.

Yeah he is a failed actor if i remember rightly.

I don't see him as an idol or anything, i just view him as a good magician. I think his monotone style actually suits his magic in that people just accept what he is creating before them, and therefore he knows he has control over their reactions.

To conduct magic successfully with such little emotion as Blaine is, in my opinion, quite a good feat.

I love David Blaine. When I first saw him during that first Street Magic series, he blew me away. It was the first time I realised that magic could affect people on an emotional level in the same way that I'd seen "psychics" affect people. If it wasn't for Street Magic the TV series, I wouldn't be where I am today.

And as a side note I don't think C4 in the UK would have had the guts to commission the first series of Tricks of the Mind if Street Magic hadn't been as successful as it had been.

I know David Blaine can be a bit of a knob, and I know that his "tricks" weren't original or performed particularly well. But look beyond that. What you may see as him being a bit dim and a bit vacant was in fact what freaked people out and was so new at the time. Up until Street Magic, magicians really were Mr. Sparkly Waistcoat with his Doves of Love. David Blaine acted more like a medium or a psychic. It blew me away.

But yes, he's really stupid as well. Trapped in ice. Yeah, right. Sitting in a box? Hand me a cheeseburger, I've a yen to throw something.

Im glad im not the only one who likes his style.

I agree with you there, he has something about him that creeps you out, especially when he comes to the climax of a trick.

Not this old chestnut again!

This has been covered in depth on a number of occasions elsewhere

Sorry! I did do a search for David Blaine on here but i couldnt find a thread that specifically focused on him in this way.

My apologies!

I recently looked for an effect - I think it was the Raven and saw a video of him using it. He used it to disappear a coin off a young boys hand. The young chap seemed rather, what we might have quaintly described in the past as "simple" or an American would label retarded. He stood there in bafflement as the coin was no longer there saying "cool" and Blaine with his deadpan, almost stoned non expression just stands there. It is the strangest bit of footage of magic I have ever seen. I'm not sure what to make of him.

Sk8r St3v3 wrote:I just wanted to see if we could fairly establish why many mature magicians (not the media brainwashed ones that is) generally have a distaste for Blaine and both his character and magic performances.

My where I'm looking most "mature" magicians.... don't.

Lawrence wrote:My where I'm looking most "mature" magicians.... don't.

Agreed.

This is funny, though. Well, it's actually ridiculous: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeddPlj2D4E

I think ive discovered the reason behind his monotone persona.

Hes always stoned, must be. Answers a lot of questions about him thats for sure, i mean how else would you survive in a plastic box above the god awful thames river on only water for 44 days and nights?

He's not stoned he's actually very professional. He has admitted to have been addicted to heroin. On a recent Magic Newswire Podcast some magicians were discussing how animated Blaine was. His intense/drowsy/stoned look is his performance persona. Not every bodies cup of tea though. I prefer Avid Merrion's Bo Selecta version of Blaine - "Shazaam!"

Well i meant that as a joke actually .

But i agree with you, and thats what i like about him, people cant contend with his persona because its so authoratative, whereas spectators might press a little harder with someone who is less in control.

i like him a lot...

doesnt it go to show how you can be successful with shop-bought, freely available and found magic (eshly please note!) and still be a very, very popular and entertaining...

i ike his persona, at least he's not some cheesy old scrote in a too tight waistcoat doing the 4 aces trick...

he revitalised magic and mentalism...put it in a more modern (yet older, mystic) style...he gave a premise to how "he" performed...

there are very good reasons as to why he performs how he does, his persona i mean...

anyone who doesnt admit that we owe blaine a huge debt is fooling themselves...

the downside is, we got lumbered with the hit and run "street magic" of some kids - but without the camera-crew following them, and then they wonder why they get told to f&&& off by some people...

think about it - he takes simple, straightforward plots, and sometimes shop-bought magic, and performs it...and gets massive reactions...people "believe him"...

whats not to like?