DVD Review: Ellis Aces by Ed Ellis

Worker Ed Ellis teaches a fast and visual four ace production and offers some tips for performing common sleights. If you don’t yet have a four ace production routine, you may like Ellis’ approach. I liked his Stair Step Control that he teaches here and the fact that this four ace production doesn’t require a table. This one is great for walk around.

In Ellis Aces, Ellis removes and displays the four aces and then makes use of his Stair Step Control to place the cards in different locations of the deck. After losing the cards, the aces are found, one by one, using Ellis’ fingertip production. It’s a visual and commercial effect that happens in the hands.

Ellis’ Stair Step Control is good. Any four cards are inserted and jogged in the deck to create a stepped look that makes it appear that the cards are going into different parts of the deck. By the way, Ellis already teaches part of the method on his “You Ring?” DVD. You don’t get the Stair Step control on that DVD, but those who already own “You Ring?” may be disappointed to discover a similar method.

To produce the cards, Ellis relies on his flashy fingertip production to reveal each ace in much the same manner. If you prefer color changes and more variety in your productions, you may find the sequence rather repetitive.

The rest of the DVD offers general card working tips. The Axis Double is a fancy DL where the card spins in the hands. I’ve seen doubles similar to this one, in particular, those taught by the Buck twins.

While I occasionally use a move similar to this, I have mixed feelings about performing DLs this way as the flashy manner of displaying the card draws attention and scrutiny to it. But if it suits you persona as an entertainer, as it does with Ellis, this one can work for you.

Ellis offers advice on the well known and widely used Riffle Slip Force to make it more convincing - the “chosen” card appears to come from the center of the deck. I regularly perform a riffle slip force and found it interesting that many of the things that Ellis teaches here are aspects that I already was doing and learned on my own over the years. But there are some helpful hints.

In Card Style, Ellis offers a few techniques for picking up and displaying cards that adds some flair to the proceedings. The DVD also features an episode of Ellis’ TV show.

If you can use a four-ace production that doesn’t require a table, you may like Ellis Aces. This one is fast and visual, just as the ads promise.

-Wayne N. Kawamoto

MSRP: (US) $20

Dealers can purchase from Murphy's Magic Supplies, Inc.