Magic review

Review:

Anthony Hopkins has claimed that playing Hannibal Lecter was simple once he nailed down the character's distinctive voice. Over a decade earlier, Hopkins delivered another great vocal performance as Fats. Before Corky becomes a ventriloquist, he is already a sweaty jumble of neuroses. Anybody who saw this man walking down the street would realize he is in need of professional help. Once Fats enters the picture, his nasal but forceful voice is both insistent and grating. The voice is a great piece of acting because it is easy to imagine oneself looking as disturbed as Corky if this voice were inside you all the time and had no way to release itself. Magic's suspense plot is overwrought and unoriginal, but Hopkins' performance gives the film a freshness and an energy it would otherwise lack. by Perry Seibert, Rovi