Ideas Volume 1 – Pendulms by Amira
What it is
A 144 page ebook plus a 30 minute movie file that shows a few of the routines in the book then explains a force used in the later routines.
Cost
I was lucky enough to receive a review copy.
If you buy it $40 so about £24.50
Available from
http://ideaspendulums.blogspot.com/
Difficulty
1-2, there are obviously no knuckle busting sleights, however a measure of chutzpah is required to make the most of the material, particularly the Suggestion Force.
Review
Having used pendulums for many years in a closed eye context, I began to use one (in my own hands) in a ‘psychic’ routine using the Beyond ESP cards in order to take the heat away from the back of the cards, so I was intrigued to see how a mentalist like Pablo Amira would use one in his act.
First off I’ll say he is one of those mentalists who clearly hugely enjoys what he does and that enjoyment comes through in his writing which is always interesting and certainly stimulates your thought processes, even if the effect in conclusion isn’t for you. This is a very easy read, I sat down with my Kindle intending to read a couple of chapters and wound up reading the lot.
The first section of the book is the use of pocket watches as pendulums, something I hadn’t considered and one routine in particular which involves the participant divining the time a watch is stopped at, could easily be turned into a bizarre routine where the original watch owner’s time of death is divined.
Chapters:
1.PK Time Pendulum
2.Time Stop Pendulum
3.ChronoPendulm
4.Subliminal Pendulm
The second section is more around a few ideas around having the participant perform with the pendulum, thus causing a PK effect in your own hand, with some example routines and handling tips. This I can imagine gives these effects enormous impact in the spectator’s eyes, far more than if the mentalist makes the ‘thing’ happen. The participant becomes the psychic.
Chapters:
1.Haunted Key with Pendulum
2.Voodoo Doll with Pendulum
3.PK Coin Bend with pendulum
4.Haunted Handkerchief
5.Any animation With pendulum
The third section is a miscellaneous round up of other ideas, including a cold reading routine using a Tarot prediction.
Chapters:
1.Pendulum PK Touches
2.Triangle Position
3. pendulum as container
4.Cards with pendulums
5. Dual Hold Pendulum
6.Other premises for pendulums
7.Envelope Pendulum
8. pendulums with Locks
0 Tarot Pendulum
The forth section is four routines using the suggestion force, including a Russian roulette routine where the spectator chooses which of the choices are safe.
Chapters:
1. Dr Joseph’s Game
2. Assassin and Detective
3. Dowsing Divination
Overall
Lot of food for thought here, hence I suppose the title. What I would say is that whilst there are good routines here to illustrate the methods I think this book would better suit those able to think outside of those routines and use the methods and handlings in their own routines. So less a series of self contained packet tricks and more a series of building blocks.
The suggestion force is certainly an interesting idea, as mentioned above it’ll take some subtle manipulation to pull it off but when it works it will be something the participant will certainly remember you for.
This very much suits the direction I seem to be moving in (oddly back towards a more closed eye presentation) so I took a lot from it.
All in all a very well written and entertaining book from a very innovative mentalist.
I’d give it 9/10
Slightly offtopic, but there are a lot of very talented people releasing their work at the moment, it is a very exciting time.