My Thoughts on the Film, Magic (1978)...

If I wanted to watch Anthony Perkins playing a psychopath, I’d watch Psycho (1960).

That being said, Anthony Hopkins does his level best in the film, Magic (1978), playing a fragile man struggling with fractured personalities, but I couldn’t, no matter how hard I tried, blink and not see Anthony Perkins. They play the same role. Their characters are both subjugated by a dominant “other.” They even have lookalike hairstyles.

Hopkins plays Corky, a struggling stand-up comedian/magician who finally gets his break after he picks up—or reveals—a ventriloquism doll. Corky is at first seemingly timid and softspoken, unusual traits for stand-up comedians. He flees to the Catskill Mountains to avoid a mandatory medical exam required for a network television pilot he’s slated to star in.

Soon, Corky’s dominant personality, Fats the Dummy, takes over, and he’s a bullish, vicious killer.

Or is it Corky who’s a bullish, vicious killer?

Ann Margaret—always a joy to watch on screen—capably plays Peggy Ann, part-owner of rentable cabins where Corky seeks sanctuary, and his soon-to-be love interest. Burgess Meredith shines as Ben Greene, Corky’s hotshot agent, who is too smart for his own good.

The film falls victim to its own heavy-handed script. Which is surprising, since the writer William Goldman based it on his novel of the same name. Perhaps the editors had too much say. The plot points are loud and crowded together, minus the necessary character development.

When I completely lost attention was when Ben confronted Corky about his illness and suggested that he seek help. There was no lead-up to this, no added scene or two to give hints that the agent suspects something, just Ben arriving at Corky’s cabin unexpectedly, feeling quite accusatory, if not a little fearful (I did say that he was too smart for his own good).

All in all, the main question this film asks is, “Who’s controlling whom?” The question I asked after viewing this film is, “Who cares?” Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate the film outright, but I kind of wanted my two hours back.

A part of me wants to go back and read the source material. Perhaps I’ll add it to my To Be Read list.