The Expert at the Card Table - Looking for Erdnase (Rental)

Michael

A very well made documentary on one of magic’s greatest secret. Who wrote the most famous book on card magic and cheating at cards. The documentary covers all the possible candidates and let’s the viewers make their own decisions. This movie is great for lovers of documentaries, magic, gambling, conmen and mysteries. Definitely worth the rental.

Jose

This film is really well done. I thoroughly enjoyed this film from the production and the era to the historians and magicians with their theories on who was, Erdnase. It makes me so much more interested in the work and finding out who exactly this person was. I highly recommend this film to anyone that loves a good mystery or a great trick. Rent it today, you won't be disappointed.

Don

An entertaining and intriguing look into a verified "Man of Mystery"! Enthralling!

Lawrence

Andreas

Very well made movie. It's amazing how professional the film is produced although it is not for the mass audience. It will probably only be appreciated by people who are into magic and who can empathize with the fascination of the man who established the basic framework for what we all love so much. It is great that the author does not necessarily wants to find the final clue to who Erdnase is. Instead of this he gives us an idea of how fascinating it is to study the history of magic or at least a certain part of it.

ch

very entertaining film! I went into this knowing a few theories as to who S.W. Erdnase could be and left with a larger picture that really captures the whole process of the Erdnase hunt. I highly recommend this to anyone who is interested in magic or even to laymen who want a well put together film on a very interesting story following a large portion of modern card magic's origins.

David

Really Great!!

Carl

Very enjoyable production. The film plays like a polished documentary with captivating dramatization. I highly recommend for anyone interested in card magic or gambling.

Tom

Richly textured. Like following a thread of silk. Drawn to the knowing is it's own punishment. In the end only wonder carrys us onward.

Steven

Absolutely stunning documentary production. Loved the reenactments and interviews. Loved the POV. Will definitely share with friends in the art.

Congrats to the team that put this together.

Aaron

Ian

William

Chase

Wayne

I have been fascinated with the whole Erdnase thing since I got into magic many many years ago. I have read all the books and articles that I came across. I thought this film was great. It doesn't really give much new info for someone who has followed this story, but it is very much worth the money. Another terrific offer from Vanishing Inc.

Thom

Super enjoyable and very well done. I’ve always found the mystery of Erdnase fascinating. Highly recommend.

Ralph

Wonderful, I like it very much. Might be, that Erdnase are two persons, the cardshark and a ghostwriter. I could imagine, that the ghostwriter encouraged the cardshark to add some magic tricks to get a broader audience and more customers. Who knows?

Gary

I have just finished watching the expert at the card table looking for erdnase which is very interesting and informative if you are someone who is interested in the world of magic or someone who just likes mysteries. This is a very thought-provoking film and left me wanting to learn more shame it is only 84 minutes long, but I would recommend this film.

Tal

A fun experience that can absolutely be enjoyed by anyone, not just someone that already practices magic and knows about the book and the mystery.
Obviously as a card magician I was happy to see that effort was put on to make sure any moves that appear in the movie are genuine sleights and not "Hollywood card magic".

Michael

Marc

Very informative and thought provoking movie. Highly recommended!

Daniel

Dennis

I have been waiting a while to see this film and finally got around to setting aside time to watch it. It did not let me down. So many wonderful moments in the film. From the graphics, to the way the film was composed both musically and as a story. You really feel so many emotions about the character of Erdnase/Andrews. The continuity of the production for historical accuracy was virtually seamless. Very appealing to the eye and very much held my attention. I appreciated the use of chapters in the production as well. It gave very clear delineation on each of the theories of the candidates.
The conclusion does not disappoint and I do agree with the person who said (paraphrasing) "we do not protect the secrets of magic to protect the magic but to protect you from the secrets" Simplicity is an artform as is the skillset of cardwork. The hand actors were flawless in their presentations.

Richard

Outstanding!

Paul

Interesting engagement.

William

Whitt

Liked it except for the music overshadowing the audio sometimes, especially during the beginning of the recreation of Martin Gardner's phone call the the illustrator of EATCT. Otherwise quite well done.

Jeff

Launce

Robert

A lot of fun. But be warned. It won't make the innocent vicious; or make the fool wise, or curtail the annual crop of candidates for Erdnase. Never the less, you'll enjoy the rental (and Andi and Josh need the money).

Duane

Interesting, but as so much seems to be.... speculation and hope.

Bob

Thanks for making this available. It was well presented and acted. Enjoyed it. It is likely more interesting to magicians than others, being so narrowly focused in content. Nevertheless, I can vision someone who is interested in mysteries to have potential to enjoy.

Joe

Pedro

George

Not what I expected. I thought it was going to be a deep dive into the influence the book gave to card mechanics and close-up card magic. Instead, it was mainly focused on the idenity of the "mystery author". I guess I should've gleaned that from the title.
Too many magicians and not enough history. A pretty boring doc, IMHO.

Pete

The Expert at the Card Table - Looking for Erdnase (Rental) was a great look at the history of the classic book and its author. I'm more of a fan of the pure documentary format so for me the dramatic acting sections, though interesting, seemed a bit more speculative on each theory. ...That said, not sure how else one would convey that part of the story.

Peter

Bad acting in costumes interspersed by interesting interviews.