The Title: Killer Instinct
The Price: £15 plus postage
The Link: CLICK
The Blurb:
Your volunteer is invited to get in touch with his (or her) inner psycho and take the lead role as a killer in their own horror movie.
Five cards are displayed, each with an image of a weapon that your average horror movie killer would use. The cards are then mixed and dealt face down onto the table and your volunteer is asked to select any one from the face down spread and without looking at it, place it to one side.
Another set of cards is shown; each one has the name of a different horror movie stereotype character (The Cheerleader, The Jock, The Funny One etc.) written on and the volunteer is asked just to think of any one of one of them.
Before the character is named, the performer makes a prediction which he commits to by writing it down on the back of a business card. Only once the written prediction is placed to one side is the volunteer asked to name their selection out loud. The named card is then removed from the pack and placed to one side momentarily alongside the prediction.
The volunteer is then asked to look at the selected weapon card and a second prediction is made.
Both predictions are then shown, one reads (for illustration purposes only) “Only the Cheerleader will die tonight…” and the other reads “…and you will use the Chainsaw!!! ” The weapon card is turned over to show that the volunteer did in fact choose the Chainsaw.
The remaining character cards are turned face down to show that each card has the word “Survived” printed on the back. The selected card is then turned over and is the only one with the word “Killed” printed on the back!
The Review:
This effect is a creation of Craig Chadwick. It features quality props and some lovely thinking. I was lucky enough to be in on the play-testing stages so I've had my grubby mitts on it for a few weeks now.
The cards are lovely, with great eye-catching designs on quality stock. And the set enables a horror-movie themed double prediction - victim and weapon.
Like the "Scream" franchise, this effect plays knowingly with the clichés of the genre and this allows for the routine to be framed as light or as dark as the performer prefers. It can be a 'tongue in cheek' "it's always the Cheerleader, right?" (for the record, it's not always the Cheerleader!) or dark and grisly "... the sound of the Chainsaw struggling as it rips through sinew and bone..."
Speaking of versatility, several variations and alternate handlings are included in the package. Some require sleights, some don't, some use forces, some allow completely free choices. The set of cards is a utility for performers and the routine can successfully straddle the worlds of magic and mentalism.
Want to play the modern psychological mentalist? Well then you used their fear response to control their choices.
More on the magic end of the spectrum? These cards are visual, unusual and the plot is something new.
Dabbling in the bizarre? This effect is a great framework for building your story-telling experience.
I really like Killer Instinct. It looks great, immediately grabs attention and garners some great reactions.
The Summary: Recommended!
