The Magus (film)

The Magus (film)

Infobox Film | name = The Magus


caption =
director = Guy Green
producer = Jud Kinberg
John Kohn
writer = Novel & screenplay:
John Fowles
starring = Michael Caine
Anthony Quinn
Candice Bergen
Anna Karina
Julian Glover
music =
cinematography = Billy Williams
editing =
distributor = 20th Century Fox
released = December 10, 1968
runtime = 117 minutes
language =
rating =
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
imdb_id = 0063260

"The Magus" is a 1968 film directed by Guy Green. The screenplay was written by John Fowles, based on his novel of the same name. It starred Michael Caine, Anthony Quinn, Candice Bergen and Anna Karina. It was released the "God Game" in the UK, and in Germany (Teuflische Spiele).

Plot

Michael Caine stars as Nicholas Urfe, a young Englishman who has taken a teaching position on the Greek island of Phraxos following the previous instructor's suicide. For Nicholas it is a chance for different surroundings, and it is also an attempt to escape his relationship with his emotionally unstable lover, Anne (Karina).

At first Nicholas' life on Phraxos is uneventful but peaceful. He soon becomes intrigued by a reclusive man named Maurice Conchis (Quinn) who owns an estate on the opposite side of island and has a beautiful young woman named Lily (Bergen) as his companion. Immediately upon being introduced to the couple Nicholas' life begins to unravel. He tries to find out who the mysterious Conchis really is, but he continually runs into dead ends.

Is he a psychiatrist? A film producer? A Nazi sympathizer? Or is he a magician who controls the lives and destinies of those around him? Nicholas quickly begins to lose his grip on reality as he sinks further and further into Conchis' game.

During visits to Conchis and his estate, Nicholas has a series of interesting experiences which gradually start to become more and more unexpected and bizarre. Many of these events are related to (or are re-enactments of) past events from Conchis' life which he has been relating to Nicholas. Ultimately, these events also begin happening off the estate as well, at unexpected times and places, raising questions as to how much power and control Conchis can actually exercise over others' lives.

Near the end of the film, the story climaxes with a "trial" directed by Conchis with Nicholas (and many others) participating, in which Nicholas must take on a totally unexpected role.

The final scene (which may be interpreted almost as a coda) has to do with Nicholas' relationship with Anne and whether or not it continues.

Cast

Fowles has a minor role as a boat captain.

Reception

The film was a critical disaster. Fowles was extremely disappointed with it laying most of the blame on director Guy Green [John Fowles, The French Lieutenant's Diary, Granta #86, 2004, ISBN 0 90 314169 8] despite having written the screenplay himself. Woody Allen has made the comment that if he could live his life over again, he would do everything the same except for seeing "The Magus."

DVD release

The film was released to DVD by 20th Century Fox on October 16, 2006, marking the first time that it has ever been available on home video in the U.S.

External links

*
* [http://caine-home.narod.ru/60-25/60-25.html The Magus - Photos]

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • The Magus (novel) — The Magus   First UK edition …   Wikipedia

  • The Magus — may refer to:* The Magician (Tarot card), a Major Arcana Tarot card * The Magus (handbook) (1801), a handbook on occult and magic by Francis Barrett * The Magus (novel) (1965), a novel by John Fowles * The Magus (film) (1968), a film starring… …   Wikipedia

  • The Saint (film) — Infobox Film name=The Saint caption=The Saint promotional poster writer=Leslie Charteris (character) Jonathan Hensleigh Wesley Strick starring=Val Kilmer Elisabeth Shue Rade Šerbedžija director=Phillip Noyce producer=David Brown Robert Evans… …   Wikipedia

  • The Magus — Der Magus (Originaltitel: The Magus) ist ein 1965 erschienener Roman des britischen Autors John Fowles. Der Magus ist der erste Roman des britischen Autors John Fowles, den er jedoch erst nach dem Erfolg seines Romans The Collector (dt. Der… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Simon Magus (film) — Simon Magus is a 1999 film directed by Ben Hopkins.toryA Jew named Dovid Bendel (Stuart Townsend) tries to revive his dwindling village by building a railway station next to it. The squire (Rutger Hauer) agrees to provide the land, on the… …   Wikipedia

  • The Collector — is the title of a 1963 novel by John Fowles. It was made into a movie in 1965. Plot summary The novel is about a lonely young man, Frederick Clegg, who works as a clerk in a city hall, and collects butterflies in his spare time. The first part of …   Wikipedia

  • The Tempest — Infobox Play name = The Tempest |200px caption = Prospero, Ariel and Miranda by William Hamilton writer = William Shakespeare genre = Comedy / Romance setting = Desert isle subject = Retribution / Forgiveness premiere = November 1, 1611… …   Wikipedia

  • The Complete Jack Johnson Sessions — Album par Miles Davis Sortie 2003 Genre Jazz fusion Label Columbia Records Critique Allmusic …   Wikipédia en Français

  • The Man with the Horn — Album par Miles Davis Sortie 1981 Enregistrement 1 juin 1980 6 mai 1981 à Columbia Studio, New York Durée 52:37 Genre jazz fusion Producteur …   Wikipédia en Français

  • The Complete On the Corner Sessions — Album par Miles Davis Sortie 2007 Enregistrement 1972 à 1974 Durée 6:47:13 Genre Jazz fusion Producteur …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”