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The Amazing Johnathan Documentary

Play trailer 2:26 Poster for The Amazing Johnathan Documentary 2019 1h 31m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 41 Reviews 55% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Filmmaker Benjamin Berman has a difficult time separating truth from fiction as he documents the final tour of a dying magician.
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The Amazing Johnathan Documentary

The Amazing Johnathan Documentary

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Critics Consensus

The Amazing Johnathan Documentary sets out to survey a magician's final tour -- and ends up pulling off some wildly ambitious tricks of its own.

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Critics Reviews

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Cath Clarke The Big Issue 11/21/2019
As a device for a film it's interesting to a point -- but it didn't fully work its magic on me. Go to Full Review
Ian Freer Empire Magazine 11/19/2019
3/5
The Amazing Johnathan Documentary starts as a blast but as the journey progresses, becomes ever more slippery: Is Szeles tricking Berman? Is Berman bamboozling us? The answer is entertaining and frustrating in equal measures. Go to Full Review
Ed Potton The Times (UK) 11/18/2019
4/5
It's compelling stuff: funny, moving and, yes, often amazing. Johnathan is a slippery subject, but in Berman he has a committed chronicler, who is even prepared to smoke meth with him on camera. Go to Full Review
Steven Sheehan The Digital Fix 02/06/2020
6/10
Learning more about Berman's childhood and problems faced completing the documentary just isn't that interesting, and once you see through the illusion, the magic quickly starts to fade. Go to Full Review
Rich Cline Shadows on the Wall 11/25/2019
4/5
[The Amazing Johnathan Documentary] provides a fascinating look at art, perception and the nature of truth. Go to Full Review
Jamie East The Sun (UK) 11/25/2019
3/5
A cursory tale that it's well worth planning things in advance as much as possible, this is a gnat's breath away from being a complete disaster, but is saved by a first-time director's naive faith it will all be saved in the edit. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Tyler J 03/16/2024 Seems like a very dishonest Documentary where the director needlessly interject himself into the film! Not worth your time. See more David R 06/04/2023 Dishonest film making. Monstrous directing. See more J R 02/08/2023 Yet another documentarian who thought it necessary to make the film mostly about themself. Complete with the obligatory footage of going home to his rich parents' home to talk about how he's thinking about giving up. It's a doc about how hard it was to make. Ho hum. I'm beyond sick of this narcissistic format. See more 07/10/2021 In his heyday The Amazing Johnathan was one of the funniest and most surprising comedy-magicians on the circuit. The premise for this slightly rambling and confusing documentary is to follow Johnathan on his come-back tour after a forced absence brought on by an apparent diagnosis of terminal illness. How much of what we're told is true and how much manipulation and trickery becomes the subject. Unfortunately the price is an increasing lack of focus. Still interesting, though. See more 02/04/2021 Waste of time. Fake documentary scripted to look like a crazy, frustrating and intriguing story. Berman, Chinn and the Annoying Jonathan are completely horrible at making this look authentic. See more mohammad j 09/06/2020 You never really know where the movie is heading and at first I was a bit annoyed but as the twist and turns pile up the movie really starts to shine. I was hoping for an interesting ending and staying true to the spirit of documentary, it ends in the weirdest way possible. The illusion is revealed and hilarity ensues. See more Read all reviews
The Amazing Johnathan Documentary

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MexMan 100% % MexMan Watchlist Carré 35 100% % Carré 35 Watchlist God & Country 88% 51% God & Country Watchlist TRAILER for God & Country The Filmmaker's House 57% % The Filmmaker's House Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Filmmaker Benjamin Berman has a difficult time separating truth from fiction as he documents the final tour of a dying magician.
Director
Benjamin Berman
Producer
Miranda Bailey, Benjamin Berman, Russell Wayne Groves, Amanda Marshall, Jacob Perlin
Screenwriter
Benjamin Berman
Distributor
Hulu
Production Co
Anonymous Content, Cold Iron Pictures
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 16, 2019, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 16, 2019
Runtime
1h 31m
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