‘Remembering The Magic!’ Sam Raimi Set To Remake 1978 Cult Classic [Video]
By Dread Central
5 min readSam Raimi is attached to helm a remake of ‘Magic,’ the terrifying 1978 cult classic. Anastasia Elfman revisits the original here.
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Sam Raimi is attached to helm a remake of ‘Magic,’ the terrifying 1978 cult classic. Anastasia Elfman revisits the original here.
Long before killer dummies flooded horror movie shelves and possessed puppets became an entire subgenre, there was Magic — a chilling, stripped-down, terrifying love story that still feels deeply unsettling and timely, nearly five decades later. For horror fans that seek out the strange and unusual forgotten horror gems, 1978 Magic is sacred ground.
Magic isn’t just a movie about a ventriloquist’s dummy. It’s a tragic tale that seems almost too intimate to watch. The brutality of loneliness, obsession, fractured identity, and a dash of demonic undertones will make you question your own grip on reality. Adapted from William Goldman’s (The Princess Bride, Misery) 1976 bestselling psychological thriller, of the same title. Goldman’s novel was such a hit that mega-producer Joseph E. Levine (Godzilla, The Graduate) quickly scooped up the screen rights for $1 million, to be released by 20th Century Fox.
Goldman himself wrote the screenplay, and while it was an overall similar adaptation, he took liberties with significant structural shifts — such as the big-reveal ending. By completely dropping the dummy Fats perspective through tricky diary entries deemed too hard to translate to film, and by major tonal shifts in the book that leaned more toward dark comedy and pulp fiction, the film opted for a gloomier, psychological-horror tone.
Many major Hollywood figures were considered for the project — Steven Spielberg (Duel, Hook) showed interest in directing the film, which might have starred Robert De Niro (Cape Fear, Taxi Driver) as Corky. Norman Jewison (Rollerball, Other People’s Money) was briefly attached to direct.
Other talented stars were top choices to play Corky, including Jack Nicholson (Wolf, Batman 1989), who passed because he didn’t want to wear a hairpiece, and Gene Wilder (Haunted Honeymoon, Young Frankenstein), whom both Attenborough and Goldman desperately wanted as Corky, but was blocked by producer Levine, who didn’t want a comedic actor in the film. Wilder later said losing out on the role of Corky was one of his biggest career regrets, and he was certain his background in comedy would have led to a more chilling performance.
Filming finally started in early 1978, directed by Richard Attenborough (yes, that crazed philanthropist Attenborough who gave us a T. rex in Jurassic Park), and starring a young Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs, Locked) as Corky, a failing magician on the cusp of both stardom and madness after introducing Fats, his wisecracking, demented dummy. Acclaimed actor Burgess Meredith (The Twilight Zone, Batman 1966) played Corky’s smooth-talking talent agent, and Ann-Margret (Stagecoach, 52 Pick-Up) portrayed the rekindled love interest.
Veteran film composer Jerry Goldsmith (The Mummy, 1999, Total Recall) delivers sensational orchestration with dreamy romantic themes, cinematic intensity, and nail-biting stingers that perfectly score a tour de force by Hopkins in one of his most unhinged, over-the-top camp, and yet devastating performances of his career, all while juggling his demanding dual roles. Hopkins immersed himself in the art of ventriloquism and sleight-of-hand training under the guidance of professionals to make his in-film performances look authentic. This film resonates with every live performer. I for one viscerally felt Corky’s rage and frustration to my core while he recounts screaming to his unimpressed audience, “Don’t you know how hard that was? That’s a thousand hours of my life you just saw.”
Marking Raimi’s first step into “remake territory,” I have very high hopes and am interested to see if he leans into the original uncharted novel or the widely known film version. Coming from gritty horror films, Raimi has a solid resume of delivering not only zany, nuanced slapstick and gut-turning terror, like with Evil Dead 2, Crimewave, and Darkman, but also has an immense range to expertly capture heartbreaking cautionary tales, like A Simple Plan and Spider-Man (am I the only one who cries like a baby over Uncle Ben?).
I could see his remake going either way plot-wise, but I’m begging for him to include all the Dutch angles, shaky Evil Dead camera techniques, and sneak in his Oldsmobile Classic plus Bruce Campbell (Army of Darkness, Ernie & Emma)—Hail to the King, baby!
Now, I don’t want to get all high and mighty, but the truth is I’m a huge fan of forgotten gems like Magic, which I keep particularly close to my cold, dark heart. I’m also cautious about remakes–but knowing that Sam Raimi is at the helm, I’m honestly thrilled to see what he eventually does with the material.
The jury’s still out on when Raimi will roll into production, and I’m falling to pieces over the possibilities, so I gathered together a killer companion video with my Top 5 movie moments from the 1978 Magic that include some fun and shocking revelations.
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