I caught this on TV a few days ago, and as a long time magic fan, had to watch. Unfortunately, I found it painfully dated and uninteresting. Though apparently this "plot" was applied to a successful stage show Mr. Henning had done as well, it was exceedingly annoying and tiresome. And it was a musical, something that rarely works well, and certainly didn't here. And magic acts just don't work in film format.
What is spectacular and interesting in person (or arguably, live TV) feels like just another movie effect when placed in a film, which is unfortunate, because really the only reason to WATCH this is all the signature tricks performed in it. It takes all the mystery out of it.
It's sad that this is the only example of Mr. Henning's work available, because it sucks a lot of the life out of it. Doug's personality does shine, but I cannot imagine his bare-faced wonder and colourfulness would interest modern audiences. Even wanting to like and enjoy this movie, I just couldn't watch most of it.
What is spectacular and interesting in person (or arguably, live TV) feels like just another movie effect when placed in a film, which is unfortunate, because really the only reason to WATCH this is all the signature tricks performed in it. It takes all the mystery out of it.
It's sad that this is the only example of Mr. Henning's work available, because it sucks a lot of the life out of it. Doug's personality does shine, but I cannot imagine his bare-faced wonder and colourfulness would interest modern audiences. Even wanting to like and enjoy this movie, I just couldn't watch most of it.