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Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay

Play trailer Poster for Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay 2012 1h 28m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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93% Tomatometer 41 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
Filmmakers Molly Bernstein and Alan Edelstein take a glimpse at the very private world of professional magician Ricky Jay.

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Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay

Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay

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Critics Consensus

Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay presents a fascinating -- and tantalizingly incomplete -- picture of a legendary magician and skilled raconteur.

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Critics Reviews

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THR Staff The Hollywood Reporter 11/03/2020
Astonishment abounds in doc about card-trick genius. Go to Full Review Drew Taylor IndieWire 11/03/2020
A-
We want to know as much as we can about this guy, but like any good magician, he keeps things shadowy and hard to pin down. Go to Full Review Tom Long Detroit News 07/25/2013
B
The film offers all manner of mind-blowing tricks, as well as a colorful history of the evolution of magic and illusions, especially through the 20th century. Go to Full Review Chase Beck Battleship Pretension 03/04/2021
Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay only delivers on half the promise that the title makes, there are plenty of mentors, but no real mysteries to speak of. I'm okay with that. Go to Full Review Bernard Boo Way Too Indie 04/12/2019
8.2/10
It would be entertaining enough to simply set Ricky Jay in front of a camera and let him talk, but Bernstein captures the essence of Jay's persona in a way that's as intimate and riveting as his routines. Go to Full Review Gerald Peary Arts Fuse 09/16/2013
2
The filmmaker is annoyingly passive and star-struck,as Ricky Jay, speaks only to his chosen agenda. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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11/25/2018 Man! Iï¿ 1/2(TM)ve loved Ricky Jay for many years but had no idea of his origins. No wonder he was so good: not only did he have a deep and lifelong love of magic, he had the good fortune to have loved ones and friends who were great magicians themselves. What a great documentary, both for people who loved Ricky Jay as well as for anyone who loves magic and the history of the greats, a lineage up to and including Ricky Jay himself. RIP Ricky See more 02/22/2015 Excellent and worthwhile documentary on the famous and incredible magician Ricky Jay. See more 01/18/2015 fascinating look at a world you'd never know about unless you were in the know. See more 08/29/2014 A fascinating documentary about Jay and magic in general. Slight of hand tricks that will blow your mind. I would have a little more personal information. See more 08/13/2014 It's funny....I didn't even know Ricky Jay was a magician... I just knew him from P.T. Anderson movies! Turns out he's one of the greatest illusionists of all time! And this is a wonderful doc about his life. See more 04/05/2014 I got kind of choked up during the giant ice cube story. See more Read all reviews
Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay

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Cast & Crew

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Molly Bernstein

Director

Ricky Jay

Actor

Dick Cavett

Narrator

David Mamet

Actor

Winston Simone

Actor

Alan Edelstein

Producer

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Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay

Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay (2012) Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay (2012) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Filmmakers Molly Bernstein and Alan Edelstein take a glimpse at the very private world of professional magician Ricky Jay.
Director
Molly Bernstein
Producer
Alan Edelstein, Philip Dolin
Production Co
Kino Lorber Films
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 4, 2012, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 14, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA)
$151.4K
Runtime
1h 28m
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