Review of Magicians (1982) by Gareth R — 19 Aug 2011

Magicians has plenty going for it. There's a popular comedy double act at the height of their powers; a script by the writers of a hit sitcom, featuring that very double act; and a wealth of recognisable comedy talent in the wings. It should be excellent. But it isn't.

Not that Magicians is some kind of trainwreck. It's a perfectly serviceable comedy with occasional big laughs and more frequent little ones. Merely, for a variety of reasons, it never truly ignites. Apart from occasional flirtations with really black comedy, it's sort of affably harmless.

It's about a magic double act (David Mitchell and Robert Webb) who, four years after a disastrous falling-out, decide to re-team for a highly publicised magic tournament. It's at this point the script makes its big mistake: they decide to compete separately. Since the whole appeal of Magicians is seeing Mitchell and Webb in a film together, it's absolutely mad to separate them for the majority of it. Their lack of interaction makes their own individual scenes largely fizzle. Despite one romantic sub-plot each to keep them busy, they're just not that dynamic by themselves - although the serious underwriting of Jessica Hynes as Mitchell's would-be love interest is partly to blame. (The script does at least poke fun at their rather thin attraction, and at some of the cliches that crop up in the course of it. Still, it might have been better just to dump the cliches altogether.).

There are a few gems. Peter Capaldi is invaluable as the tournament's embittered organiser, and Darren Boyd is pitifully hilarious as Webb's over-invested agent. Also Mitchell and Webb are on good form, because of course they are: Mitchell is particularly good when supposedly "conquering" his fear of flying, and Webb, perhaps the stronger actor of the two, seems tragically torn about his career's descent into phoney clairvoyeancy. The emotional connection between the two doesn't work as well as it should, nor the story of their separation and ultimate reunion, but then that's just the result of splitting them up. Obviously they're not going to resolve a lot of conflicts or have much chemistry, being so often in different rooms.

Magicians is more hit than miss, but it's undeniably disappointing given the comic pedigrees involved. It's more of a tentative step towards Hollywood than an outright invasion. Better luck next time.