DVD Review: Mental Influence by Kenton Knepper

Kenton Knepper is a master at psychology and magic and has the keen ability to take well known tricks and apply subtleties and suggestions that turn them into bafflers. This is the case with two card tricks that are explained on this DVD that are loaded with psychological twists and turns.

In Kentonism Deck, a spectator shuffles and cuts a deck after being shown the faces of the cards. The spectator cuts to one card, and this is shown to be the card that was predicted in advance. The handling appears to be clean and you do not handle the cards once the spectator has them.

You'll have to purchase or make your own gimmicked deck - it's available on the market. This one is easy to learn and contains no complicated moves. While most magicians will be familiar with the basics, Knepper adds some bold moves that creates a stronger effect. And even if the spectator catches on, there's psychology that may make him think he was seeing things as if he were hypnotized.

The second effect involves Knepper's Dual Reality Deck. A deck is dribbled from hand to hand and a spectator thinks of any card he sees. As you would expect, the card that the spectator thinks of is the one predicted in advance.

The interesting aspect here is that what the spectator sees is somehow different from what the audience sees. And when the spectator talks with friends afterwards, the trick has the potential to become even more baffling. Again, the spectator will probably feel as if he has been seeing things as if he's been hypnotized.

This one features no complicated sleight of hand. You'll have to purchase a gimmicked deck and make some easy modifications. Some may be disappointed with this DVD because its secret is basic and well known. What you're learning are Knepper's subtleties that blur the line between illusion and psychology. There's some excellent thinking behind these two card effects.

-Wayne N. Kawamoto

MSRP: (US) $25

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