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Move Zero Review

One DVD, 8 effects, a whole bunch of principles, philosophy, thinking and a heaping helping of John Bannon and one Move Zero Review all for $30. Is it gem or is it rubble? Stay tuned to find out.

Move Zero Review: Effect

This DVD contains 8 effects. Let's take a peek at each one briefly so that you get a sense of the type of effects you'll be performing.

Collusion

The basic effect here is A Card at any number. However, the spectator does everything. Two spectators freely select a number. They deal down to the combined total to find the card. Keep in mind that the magician genuinely does not know the numbers the spectators are thinking of. He does not need to know the numbers for the effect to work.

Sort Of Pyschic

In this effect, the spectator uses her intuition to find her own selection by "pyschically intuiting" where her card is.

Ulterior

Under impossible circumstances, the spectator very clearly finds her own selection, while at the same time secretly stacking the deck for an upcoming effect.

Prophet Motive

The Spectator handles the cards. They shuffle, they cut, the mix, they smush, they make all of the decisions, yet you have predicted the outcome and the card they would find.

Ion Man

This is the only non-card effect on the DVD. It's an adaptation of Max Maven's Positive/Negative where the magician predicts which coin a spectator will select along with whether it will be head's up or tail's up . . . all done with imaginary coins.

Ban-nihilation

Based on Cameron Francis's Anihilation, in this effect, the spectator freely shuffles the deck, and freely cuts the deck, yet they still find the predicted card.

Four Sided Gemini

This is a variation of the first effect, Collusion, on this DVD. In this case, the outcome is a production of the four aces.

Perennial

This effect feels a bit like a diary effect. The spectator deals out cards based on a loved one's birthdate and name only to arrive at what you've predicted in advance would be their loved one's lucky card.

Move Zero Review: Method

Rather than going over each method for each effect, I'm just going to discuss the methods at play in a more general sense. For the most part, we're talking about forces and minor — I mean very minor — set ups. That's about it.

There are also false cuts and shuffles involved . . .

. . . but Jeff . . . you said it was self-working stuff. Don't get your panties in a twirl. I think it's safe to say that it's still self-working when the spectator is doing the false shuffles and the false cuts. That's right . . . the spectator is doing it.

The shuffling and cutting techniques involved in the methods on this DVD are so deceptive, yet so self-working that the spectator can (and does in most cases) do them for you. Imagine methods where the spectator cuts a packet to the table, then shuffles the cards in her hand . . . then cuts another packet to the table . . . then shuffles the cards in her hand again, then reassembles the cut packets together . . . yet after all of that, you still are able to control the outcome of the effect without ever touching the deck.

John is an extremely clever creator, and it shows in this product. However, what really shows/shines in this project is his ability to cull. Don't get your knickers in a twist. I don't mean the card sleight. I mean his ability to select the best stuff from multiple resources. He has culled out and put together some of the best self-working techniques you've ever seen. Then he added that drop or two of Bannon . . . and bam! You've got some of the most deceptive card magic you've ever seen.

On top of this, Bannon takes (with the help of some friends) one of the most basic (and self-working) card forces to places you'd never dreamed, let alone believed, were possible. The methods are so simple, and so deceptive that in some cases, you may actually fool yourself. There are a few other techniques and methods at play here, but rest assured, they are all easy, automatica, and unbelievably deceptive.

Move Zero Review: Ad Copy Integrity

The ad copy is solid. You may notice that there's a section on the Jay Ose False Cut. For the last time, don't get your undies in a bunch. This is one of the false cuts that the spectator does. Further, even in the cases that you do it, it truly is self-working. It is not what I would consider a sleight of hand move. It's a cleverly designed/constructed action that looks like something that it's not, but it is NOT sleight of hand. It's more like sleight-of-spectator's-eye. This product delivers all that they say it will and much more.

Move Zero Review: Product Quality

Anyone who knows me knows that it's my fantasy for my pet lizard, Owen, to have a love child with Owen Packard's pet lizard (hopefully named Jeff). That aside, know this, I'm a fan of O.P., not because of his sexy pet lizard or his manly goat beard (although that does help), but rather, because he and the BBM team are leaders in the magic production industry when it comes to quality. This product is no exception.

It's produced with great attention to detail. I love the cuts from color to B&W. On occasion, during the filming, they would cut to a different camera that was a bit removed from the action so that you could see the lighting, other cameras, and the studio. I love how that felt. It was subtle and brief, but felt oh so right. The lighting, audio, editing, etc., were all done exceptionally well. The DVD menu was excellent and easy to use as well.

On top of the top-notch production values, the content was also amazing and high bang for your buck. There were several sections where Bannon answered some interview questions that I found intersting and thought-provoking. The "Trick Bag" interlaced between effects was chock full of tips, tricks and details on the various procedures and techniques used for the effects.

Further, what I found extremely valuable (as always with Bannon) was his low-key, super casual performance style. Most people become narcoleptic at the thought of self-working card trick performances. However, with Bannon, it's quite the contrary. While his performance style is low-key, his presentations and premises are quite exciting and thoughtful. They are very interactive and get the spectators involved in more than just a robotic-follow-my-instructions way.

The presentations offered and taught by Bannon are meaningful, useful, and are often part of the method. As always, presentation, is not part of what goes into my star rating. However, I still discuss it in my reviews. I do this for two reasons. First, it gives you more information about the product to help you decide if you want to purchase it. However, in this particular case, it's a bit more than that. It's meant to show you how careful, thoughtful and deceptive Bannon's material is which further proves how powerful the methods are, and as you know, "method" does impact the star rating.

Move Zero Review - Magic Reviewed

Move Zero Review: Final Thoughts

How powerful is Bannon's magic? Well here's some food for thought. Owen at BBM mailed a copy of this DVD to me nearly 2 months ago. It never arrived. Every few days, we'd check in with each other via email to see what's going on. It never arrived, so finally, Owen sent me another copy. I got it about a week ago. I didn't have time to watch it until today, June 9, 2016. The final effect on the DVD, Perennial involves a spectator thinking of the birthday of a loved one. The date, she thought of? June 9. Today's date. That's the kind of magic John Bannon does, and that's why he's a Master of Time and Space.

Move Zero Review - Final Verdict:
5 Stars with a Stone Status of GEM!

Available at your Favorite Magic Dealer. Dealer's see Murphy's Magic for details.

1 Comment

  • Spike Norstrum says:

    In this sense, the word is always used in the plural, but singular in construction. Note that a single house or a single other piece of property is “premises”, not a “premise”, although the word “premises” is plural in form; e.g.

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