Thursday, January 27, 2005
Jah Jah Dub - Hall of Fame
Derren Brown
For reasons I can’t fathom, this seems to be a controversial choice. His brilliance, I think, we can take for granted. If we accept that those on whom he weaves his spell are not stooges – and I do, I have seen him live and all “members of the public” were chosen at random – then rarely, if ever, have tricks been as impressive. But some find his manner grating; and perhaps he is a little smug, although I think he has earned the right to be. What elevates him into a division above David Blaine, David Copperfield and other talented entertainers is his insistence that what he does is a skill, that there is no magic. His one-off specials in particular deserve praise. Russian Roulette was the weakest of the three, and the most gimmicky. Perhaps it was for real, perhaps not; I don’t particularly care either way. The séance was better, and Messiah the best of all. These second two took aim square at the mysticism and spirituality camps that deceive and offer false assurances to the vulnerable. Showing how these illusions can be worked, even on the apparently cynical, is an essential and even heroic act. So hurrah for Derren: long may he expose snake oil-peddling charlatans and delight us with his card tricks and little beard.
|
Derren Brown
For reasons I can’t fathom, this seems to be a controversial choice. His brilliance, I think, we can take for granted. If we accept that those on whom he weaves his spell are not stooges – and I do, I have seen him live and all “members of the public” were chosen at random – then rarely, if ever, have tricks been as impressive. But some find his manner grating; and perhaps he is a little smug, although I think he has earned the right to be. What elevates him into a division above David Blaine, David Copperfield and other talented entertainers is his insistence that what he does is a skill, that there is no magic. His one-off specials in particular deserve praise. Russian Roulette was the weakest of the three, and the most gimmicky. Perhaps it was for real, perhaps not; I don’t particularly care either way. The séance was better, and Messiah the best of all. These second two took aim square at the mysticism and spirituality camps that deceive and offer false assurances to the vulnerable. Showing how these illusions can be worked, even on the apparently cynical, is an essential and even heroic act. So hurrah for Derren: long may he expose snake oil-peddling charlatans and delight us with his card tricks and little beard.
|
