Le Magicien de Lublin

My one and only viewing of this masterpiece was at a art-house theater in Royal Oak Mi. in 1979 and to this day I can tell you the beginning , middle and end. What does that tell you ?. This movie is a work of art as no other. Alan Arkin was truly magnificent. This movie should of gained a few awards and to be honest I'm not sure if it did or didn't. At least give credit where credit is do. The Magician Of Lubin is by all means is in a category of classics that were overlooked. I would love if Hollywood made more types of films like this and The Search with Montgomery Cliff. If any body has any information on the release of this title on DVD, Please post reply.

In 1978 the movie's company came to Munich to film a scene and asked the English-speaking American college students there (myself included)to be extras. The scene was filmed at a Munich opera house (and included Lisa Welchel and Louise Fletcher). We extras were the audience, angry when the Magician doesn't show. The following year I saw the finished product at a Denver movie theater and was excited to discover that one of my friends was in a couple of close-up shots. I was dismayed when, many years later, I got the movie on video and most of the original scene was edited out, including the close-ups of my friend. I am hopeful that when the movie is released on DVD it will include the entire movie, which, by the way, is suspenseful, esoteric and well done.

It amazes me how many great films fall between the cracks due to distribution problems and the march of time. Why do sentimental tosh and Oscar-baity biopics get all the home video releases and adoration, while masterful, haunting work like THE MAGICIAN OF LUBLIN is doomed to obscurity. I had to watch this from a VHS rip when it deserves the Criterion treatment.

I have no words, really-- this movie has left me stunned. Yasha the magician is one of the most complicated movie heroes, so much he makes the likes of Travis Bickle seem simplistic. An alien no matter where he goes, either among his fellow Jews or among the Gentiles who alternately marvel at his magic yet scorn him for his cultural identity and acting profession; a seducer who will love a woman one minute, then treat her like dirt the next; a spiritual seeker both hungry for and angry at a God he is not sure he believes in. His arc is harrowing, astounding-- his ultimate fate left me in such a state of catharsis, such as I rarely ever feel with any work of art.

The camerawork is subdued without being staid, the music perfectly fits the turn of the century setting. And all the actors do amazing work, especially Alan Arkin as Yasha (this may be one of his best performances ever-- it's certainly the meatiest of his roles that I've seen to date) and Louise Fletcher as the lonely widowed aristocrat most vulnerable to Yasha's advances.

A movie of this calibur deserves a restoration and wide release, but unfortunately, you can only find fuzzy, faded copies online. Better than not being able to see it at all, of course, but it is infuriating that all the superhero fast food cinema will see crystal clear home releases, and a movie like this, which breaks your heart and makes you wonder, must make do with a limited audience and inferior image quality.

Arkin spares nothing of himself in what I consider one of his finest roles. The story is both incredibly painful and liberating (the Bladerunner writer must have read this story by Singer). This movie is not for the emotionally faint of heart, but it is so incredibly honest there are great rewards. For those studying translating literature to film, I would suggest this (as well as the Bill Murray version of The Razor's Edge) as worthy case studies. Also, for a period piece, The Magician of Lublin exposes an interesting time in Europe, both for the sexual mores of the time and the existent seeds of anti-Semitism that served as a precursor to the Twentieth Century.

I am a Louise Fletcher fan and saw this film in that context. While I have not read Isaac Beshevis Singer's novel, I must say that this film lacks the dramatic punch one would expect from a Pulitzer Prize winner. Even with decent sets and costumes as well as a good cast, this story of a womanizing illusionist (Alan Arkin) lying his way through turn of the Century Poland is pretty underwhelming. Louise is top-notch, giving the film's most powerful dramatic performance, but it becomes lost in a film that never draws you in.

Valerie Perrine also has some solid scenes, while Shelly Winters overplays the part of Perrine's psycho mother to campy perfection. In the end however, the big climax comes off as more of an anti-climax, as by then you don't really care what happens. I gave it an IMDb '6', mostly for the acting turns by Fletcher, Perrine and Winters (whose climatic scene with Arkin must be seen to be believed).