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Magician, inventor and poet Jerry Andrus (1918-2007) has an insatiable appetite for uncovering the mysteries of life on the boundary between reason and illusion. Seen here wandering through his Albany, Oregon, Castle of Chaos, he demonstrates his incredible inventions (such as the Tri-Zonal Space Warper), and waxes philosophic on the subjects of reason, perception, God, and what he calls "the curse of contentment." Reflecting not only his creative genius, but also his principled lifestyle and profound involvement with the problems of human existence, A THING OF WONDER pays tribute to a man devoted equally to the science and magic of wonder.
| Catalog Number: MC-806 |
Type: Feature |
Genre: Documentary |
| Copyright: 2008 |
Length: 50 minutes |
Format:
DVD Region: 0 (All) |
| TV System: NTSC |
ISBN: |
UPC/EAN: 678277002197 |
| Label: Archipelago |
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2008-10-23 Educational Media Reviews Online, Eastern Kentucky University
By Rob Sica
This elegantly crafted and inspiring profile is affectionately devoted to magician, inventor, poet and polymath Jerry Andrus, best known as one of the world's greatest 3-D illusionists. Andrus, who died three years later in 2007 at the age of 89, was a polymath and autodidact whose restlessly inquisitive and spritely mind finds generous expression throughout the film.
The film follows Andrus through his “Castle of Chaos” home in Albany, Oregon, where he shares his inventions, muses philosophically about the nature of human fulfillment, and articulates a kind of ethics at work in his magic-making. “I can fool you,” he says, “because you’re human. You have a wonderful human mind that works no different from my human mind. Usually when we're fooled, the mind hasn't made a mistake. It's come to the wrong conclusion for the right reason." According to Andrus, there is something edifying involved in the process of our experiencing these wrong optical conclusions and then having the reasons for them exposed to us: an awed enlargement of our sense of how variously the world can be seen, and renewed wonder at the instrument – the human mind – through which it is seen. Among the many pleasures in watching the documentary is participation in this process through a host of optical illusions demonstrated by Andrus (such the ‘Tri-Zonal Space Warper’, perhaps Andrus’ most famous invention).
Extra features include several outtakes, Andrus’ last interview, vintage performances of magic tricks, and a ‘Tri-Zonal Space Warper’ loop
| 2008-02-28 Willamette Weekly
By Brian Libby
Jerry Andrus, the 85-year-old magician profiled in A Thing of Wonder, says every field needs inexperienced people to bring new, fresh ideas. As described in the film, he once duped a convention of the world's top card magicians, an unthinkable feat Andrus credits to his self-teaching, because his competitors could never learn his tricks.
Similarly, the Portland filmmaking trio behind A Thing of Wonder--Adrienne Leverette, Eric Schopmeyer and Rob Tyler, collectively known as Archipelago--have eschewed formal cinematic training on their way to developing an exceptional gift for making documentaries.
Before their first film, 2000's Honky Tonk Dirt, none had any filmmaking experience at all. But in this endearing portrait of local street musician Lucky Buster (a longtime fixture beside Cinema 21), their instincts were correct and their ambition was clear. Best of all, they weren't satisfied.
"Every day as we were editing Honky Tonk Dirt, we'd talk about what we had and what we wished we had," recalls Leverette. "The process of making that movie, and even more so just watching it, was our training for this one." Indeed, the trio learned well, for Archipelago's sophomore effort marks a leap forward in the sophistication of its storytelling style.
Andrus is not just an aging magician, but a philosopher, a skeptic, and a bundle of energy. "He's the most alive 85-year-old I've ever met," says Schopmeyer. "His mind is constantly engaged, and he's always working on something, always thinking about something, always doing something." And Andrus' magic isn't about deception, but rather a mission to reveal different ways of perceiving the world around us.
A man of his immutable intelligence and charm, Andrus claims to have never once been in love. "It's hard to believe, but he says it so matter-of-factly," Leverette muses. "He's definitely focused on the things he does."
The film expertly indulges Andrus' take on everything from the taste of homemade apple juice to the existence of God, and his opinions aren't always what you'd expect. Take Andrus' rigid adherence to every last traffic law: "Here's this guy who has built his life around questioning absolutely everything," says Schopmeyer, "and he won't cross an empty street against the light." Tyler recalls how Andrus wants to design a "Thank You" sign for the back window of his car, to pop up when courteous drivers let him into their lane.
A Thing of Wonder is full of crafty camera angles and imaginative, even musical editing--the latter being no surprise, since Schopmeyer and Leverette are classically trained musicians. Schopmeyer also fronts the local rock band Slackjaw and is a music teacher at Marysville Elementary, where he and Leverette (along with friend Anthony Jamesbarry) recorded their self-composed score to the film. And while the production values are tremendously impressive, particularly for a local film, they never get in the way of Andrus' personal history. "We're not into doing the Ken Burns type of documentary, which I think holds your hand too much with narration and photos," says Tyler. "We'd rather have the subjects tell their own story."
The film's structure is like a meandering country road in a world of expressways. It comes from Archipelago's approach: "We don't write the movie and shoot it," Leverette says. "We like to hang out with these people, shoot them talking, and see what we have."
The movie's 45-minute length will prevent a long feature run (and placement on a short-film program), so Thursday's Northwest Film Center show and a September one-nighter at the Clinton Street Theater may be the only chances to catch it. But make sure you do: Like one of Andrus' card tricks, A Thing of Wonder is a dazzling, intricate work that seems effortless--and it'll be gone before you know what hit you.
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