Magicians love wallets. Almost as much as we like boxes. And we especially love wallets that come in nice boxes. There seem to an endless supply of wallets released on the magic world with many claims to be the ultimate – the final word – etc. etc. Today we have a look at Matthew Wright’s much vaunted Fourseen Wallet which bills itself as “The world’s first simultaneous multi-peek wallet.” (In fact, technically the box says “multi-peek waller” but we wouldn’t want to draw attention to that unfortunate typo!) It comes in an unassuming little box which contains the wallet itself and not one but two DVDs, about which quite a lot more shortly.
The wallet itself is very well made. Somewhat bigger than my hip pocket wallet I use day to day, but not unreasonably large (about 13.5×9.5×2.5cm, the ‘Mullica’ part is about 11×8.5×0.5cm). It feels like good quality leather, and with a bit of use promises to age nicely. Matthew consistently uses the Mullica insert (which I would typically consider a credit card wallet) as a business card holder. This feels slightly odd to me, but seems to fly past audiences, and gives a rationale for some of the moves in the routines.
It is, of course, gaffed to the hilt – which amongst other things means there are two different card to wallet features (a palm and a no-palm option), a nail-writing/peak feature, and of course the multi-peek function.
The first DVD features Matthew Wright in discussion with Harry Robson. Although the conversation occasionally feels slightly contrived, both of these men know their magic. So even as they discuss the wallet and its features and introduce the performances of the various effects there are some useful little tips and even the odd trick if you are listening carefully.
The routines
There are LOTS of routines performed and explained in this outfit. One of the conspicuous features of the routines on this DVD is that with one exception (which is the bonus routine) they are shot with real-life performances – so you see Matthew at his best. As a result, a couple of the routines suffer with the sound but there are no real problems.
There are a great mix of routines – some shorter, others longer, some lighter others more serious. There are card tricks, mind-reading tricks, a gambling effect, even one suitable for trade shows. Here are a few brief comments on the routines.
Think of a dog – some nice psychological touches for this mind-reading effect.
Foursight – this is the ‘signature’ effect using the quadruple peak to the full – a strong routine which again has some clever psychology built in. To perform it as well as Matthew you will need to be confident with ‘cold reading’ – and if you’re not this could significantly reduce the impact of the effect.
Chinese Fish Trumps – a clever word-association premise which takes all the focus away from the wallet and makes the quadruple revelation even more amazing.
Squeak to Jermay – a light-hearted take on thought transmission.
Derren’s Whisper – a wonderfully cheeky effect where a spectator does the mind-reading.
Poker Faced Peek – a nice prediction utilising emoticons with an extra surprise if you’re lucky.
Smiley Stooge – a variation on the previous routine utilising some ‘instant stooging’- great fun.
Clocking Off – (requires an extra prop available separately) but brings in a clever time prediction to the party.
ANAAC – very strong variation on the trusty ACAAN theme where a chosen card is found in the wallet with a chosen number on its back.
Twin Peaks – a two card prediction which is much more powerful than that bald description sounds.
Raw Ambition – yet another ambitious card routine (well maybe you haven’t got one yet?) with card to wallet finish.
Double Card to Wallet – does what it says in the tin – utilising both different card to wallet features of the wallet.
Double or nothing – a bit of preparation work here to make your own gimmicked deck which then enables a fun and very fair looking gambling routine with a very strong finish.
My favourite card trick – great trade show trick but which would also work as a way of getting your business card into someone’s hands in a more normal close-up setting.
Bonus Effect – Collosal (which I think is an intriguing spelling of colossal!) Prediction – a sort of Kolossal Killer variation resulting in a nice clean number prediction.
The Second DVD
This explanations of all the routines and all the features of the wallet. Helpfully all the features and the ‘moves’ are explained separately from the actual routines. First some steps for setting up the wallet are explained. Then Matthew takes you through various features of and moves with the wallet. In this and later explanations there are some very helpful slow-motion over the shoulder shots with on-screen explanations to make sure you can understand what is going on.
Some of the moves are very easy (for example the key feature – the multiple peeks – is easy but bold), some will require more practise. But they are well worth practising for the strength of the effects. As already mentioned above, some of the routines will require a significant degree of showmanship and confidence in delivery to raise them into the miracle class – there is a danger that in the hands of a mediocre performer some of the effects could fall flat.
The explanations of the effects themselves are relatively brief – but most of the constituent parts have already been explained. The explanations do assume some basic card handling skills for some of the routines – though resources for these are readily available.
We really like the wallet and think there are some brilliant routines here which will also stimulate your thoughts to come up with your own routines that suit your style. If we had a criticism it is that the nature of the wallet means that some of the routines require quite a lot of going in and out of the wallet for business cards etc. You will need to be a reasonably confident performer to pull some of these off with the style which Matthew does.
I am not sure I have ever seen such a comprehensive set of instructional material with a wallet – there is well over 2 hours of material here, and lots to get you thinking. Time to take a peek we think…
You can buy the Fourseen Wallet at MagicDirect.