This Francis Ford Coppola production directed by the great cinematographer Caleb Deschanel rambles here and there and is full of a lot of terrific scenes that ultimately add up to nothing.
Griffin O'Neal is fine in the title role --- he has the same naturalness that made his sister Tatum so appealing. However,like the movie, his character is pretty fuzzy...is he a grifter? a magician? an escape artist? Deschanel's direction is fine but it's not always clear what decade this takes place in...the clothes appear modern, but the characters and dialog have a very 1920s sensibility. O'Neal joins a vaudevillian magic act, but where is there a vaudevillian magic act to be found 1980s America?
The eclectic cast is first-rate: Raul Julia, Teri Garr, Joan Hackett, and Jackie Coogan have key roles and, in a rare film appearance, Desi Arnez plays the crooked mayor.
Griffin O'Neal is fine in the title role --- he has the same naturalness that made his sister Tatum so appealing. However,like the movie, his character is pretty fuzzy...is he a grifter? a magician? an escape artist? Deschanel's direction is fine but it's not always clear what decade this takes place in...the clothes appear modern, but the characters and dialog have a very 1920s sensibility. O'Neal joins a vaudevillian magic act, but where is there a vaudevillian magic act to be found 1980s America?
The eclectic cast is first-rate: Raul Julia, Teri Garr, Joan Hackett, and Jackie Coogan have key roles and, in a rare film appearance, Desi Arnez plays the crooked mayor.