Genre: Drama
Director: Eric Khoo
Cast: Bosco Francis, Jathishweran, Seet Keng Yew, Jason Lim, Kalaiselvi Grace
RunTime: 1 hr 22 mins
Released By: GV & Zhao Wei Films
Rating: NC-16
Official Website: www.zhaowei.com/mymagic

Opening Day: 25 September 2008

CLICK HERE FOR OUR CHAT WITH THE DIRECTOR & CAST OF "MY MAGIC"

Synopsis:

Francis (Bosco Francis) is a man at the end of is tether. The former magician often takes solace in the bottle and barely ekes out a living as a cleaner in a nightclub. He has a 10-year-old son he loves desperately, but sorrow, guilt and constant inebriation have made him an ineffectual father. The son (Jathishweran) is a stoic ‘old soul’ who has learned to bury his affection for his old man and to cope with his chaotic life. A broken spirit and a single parent, Francis hopes to redeem himself and win his son’s love and respect. He makes a painful - and bizarre – return to magic. An unexpected incident one night sets father and son on the road. In a dilapidated building, these two wounded souls come to terms with their love - a love which is as deep and acute as their grief.

Movie Review:

The first thing that stood out in My Magic was that raw cinematography that is reminiscent of director Eric Khoo’s debut Mee Pok Man. The editing and material presented also felt rather unpolished as compared to what local films are offering nowadays.

But eventually as the story progress, Francis Bosco and young Jathishweran’s strong performance easily swept me into their world of uneasy kinship and predicament. Francis Bosco’s screen presence and charisma are undeniable. His portrayal of an intoxicated alcoholic created the dreary notion of being stuck as a family member with him. When he started performing those flesh piercing, glass eating and other dangerous magic stunts on screen, it’s hard to keep the eyes off those gut wrenching scenes.

Jathishweran also turn in a stellar performance as the long suffering son. He did well to transmit the sense of vulnerableness as a kid who is constantly being harassed by his dad and his peers. He continues to enrapt the viewers with his strength and will to survive through those difficult periods of his life.

Beside their strong performance, the themes presented in this movie also resonate with me. The film touches on the issue of addiction and I am sure that everyone has a form of addiction to various degrees. It’s difficult not to yield to temptation even one acknowledges the harms and problems that it brings to oneself and the love ones. It really boiled down to the choice of continuous succumbing to addiction or making a stand against addiction for the sake of love ones.

When the movie was almost at its ends, it unravel another aspect of the story that’s being told and the whole drinking problem was shown in a new light. In fact, the subtle twist and revelation that happens in this movie felt like a magic act. Just when you thought you have a character pegged, it turns and revealed something else.

Before my webmaster starts accusing me of being lazy in coming up with only one word for the one liner to sum up this movie with, I would like to offer my excuse reason for it.
The final scene left me utterly captivated and at that moment, I knew what my one liner would be to sum up My Magic as there’s really no point in adding any more words to it.

Movie Rating:



(Captivating!)

Review by Richard Lim Jr