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[Merged] "An Honest Liar" - The Amazing Randi Story/A Randi film

The Central Scrutinizer said:
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but....

I did see Linda & Karl. And DJ. And Michael Feldman (NECSS organizer) and his dad. And my friend Daniela was in the credits. And I was too!!! Sort of. At least someone with my name. I'm gonna tell the girls it is me.
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That's nothing. The Kickstarter streaming version of the film has my email address as a super at the top right of the screen throughout the entire movie! I am honored!*

*Please don't write me, though.
 
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AdMan said:
That's nothing. The Kickstarter streaming version of the film has my email address as a super at the top right of the screen throughout the entire movie! I am honored!*

*Please don't write me, though.
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Liar! That's my email address. Anyone who watches it will see it plain as day.
 
Please get the word out

Please get your friends out to see the movie! Tyler and Justin have worked their asses off putting this film together. They are working to distribute this direct to theaters themselves, and most stints are only a week long. Go to anhonestliar.com to see the theater schedules.

Thanks!
 
I finally got around to watching the Kickstarter stream. I liked it a lot! Learned quite a bit I didn't previously know. I also liked seeing the footage of a young James. I wonder if the bonus footage will ever be made available to the public. I found the "To Tell The Truth" connection to be...well...amazing!

I skipped the credits. Are backers names listed? Anyway, I'm proud and honored to be a small part of it all.
 
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Just saw this last night and loved it. Really, really loved it. Great film!
 
I saw this at the Landmark Opera Plaza Cinema in San Francisco on Wednesday, March 25. There were about a dozen people there.

I thought it was pretty good. There was a lot of great old and not often seen footage of Randi. It concentrated a lot on Deyvi. They make such an odd couple, especially with their age difference. It isn’t really what I think about when I think about Randi, but they did make it into an interesting and emotional story.

I wish it had more on the Million Dollar Challenge, which barely got a mention. JREF and TAM seemed to be largely skipped over as well.

I was disappointed that Geller got an almost final word without rebuttal. After the movie, the person I saw it with seemed to be really thinking and re-evaluating his beliefs. Several hours after seeing the film, he said that he had thought the most relevant statement in the film was at the end when Geller said that just because a stage magician was able to replicate his abilities using magic trick doesn’t mean that he isn’t doing them with real powers, but it had just dawned on him that that wasn’t actually relevant because it didn’t explain why Geller was unable to perform on The Tonight Show when his props had been set up to foil his tricks or why other people’s claimed abilities failed when done under conditions to control against trickery.

The best part was the next day when we were shopping and stopped into a tea shop and were drinking some samples and the girl behind the counter was describing the flavors, ingredients, and benefits of each tea: “This one is good for a congested cough. This cures a headache. This one is good for cancer patients and prevents Alzheimer's.” He said, “It is amazing that each one of these teas has so many health benefits. Oh, wait…Amazing. Liars!” I gave him a knowing wink. We still bought some tea. It was delicious.
 
DevilsAdvocate said:
I saw this at the Landmark Opera Plaza Cinema in San Francisco on Wednesday, March 25. There were about a dozen people there.

I thought it was pretty good. There was a lot of great old and not often seen footage of Randi. It concentrated a lot on Deyvi. They make such an odd couple, especially with their age difference. It isn’t really what I think about when I think about Randi, but they did make it into an interesting and emotional story.

I wish it had more on the Million Dollar Challenge, which barely got a mention. JREF and TAM seemed to be largely skipped over as well.

I was disappointed that Geller got an almost final word without rebuttal. After the movie, the person I saw it with seemed to be really thinking and re-evaluating his beliefs. Several hours after seeing the film, he said that he had thought the most relevant statement in the film was at the end when Geller said that just because a stage magician was able to replicate his abilities using magic trick doesn’t mean that he isn’t doing them with real powers, but it had just dawned on him that that wasn’t actually relevant because it didn’t explain why Geller was unable to perform on The Tonight Show when his props had been set up to foil his tricks or why other people’s claimed abilities failed when done under conditions to control against trickery.

The best part was the next day when we were shopping and stopped into a tea shop and were drinking some samples and the girl behind the counter was describing the flavors, ingredients, and benefits of each tea: “This one is good for a congested cough. This cures a headache. This one is good for cancer patients and prevents Alzheimer's.” He said, “It is amazing that each one of these teas has so many health benefits. Oh, wait…Amazing. Liars!” I gave him a knowing wink. We still bought some tea. It was delicious.
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I wonder if anyone told the girl behind the counter that unless the tea is willow bark or infused with aspirin that claiming it as a cure is frowned upon by the people who can shut you down for that.
 
"An Honest Liar" is now available streaming on Netflix (US, a least--maybe other countries too). Worth catching there if you haven't yet seen it.
 
I just saw the film on Netflix. Here's my critique.

It should be titled "The Alvarez Story."

Although it has a happy ending which was obviously added (or edited) just a few days ago, I feel that it has way, way, way too much emphasis on Alvarez and Geller and way too little about the Million Dollar Challenge, which was mentioned only once in passing.

Perhaps I missed something, but the credits include Tim Minchin and Neil DeGrasse Tyson, neither of which I saw in the film. While the interviews with Plait, Shaw, Swiss and others were good, I would have preferred less of them and more of other skeptics, that is, a broader field.

Some may feel that the subjects are portrayed in a "balanced" fashion, which is true only if you think that giving equal weight to the cops and the crooks makes it balanced. A scientist says aliens haven't yet visited the Earth, and a nutjob says he was abducted and taken to Zeti Reticuli last weekend. Sure -- give them equal time in science class to make it balanced.
 
I've only seen the cut-down version that the BBC showed earlier in the year, but my DVD arrived on Friday, so I'll watch that soon, and see what's on the extras.

I don't think the MDC makes for great watching; I saw one, and it was about the more boring hour I've ever spent. I also don't know that Randi is particularly involved in them, at least not during the time that filming was taking place.
 
zooterkin said:
I don't think the MDC makes for great watching; I saw one, and it was about the more boring hour I've ever spent. I also don't know that Randi is particularly involved in them, at least not during the time that filming was taking place.
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I agree that watching an actual test is a lot like watching paint dry. But I feel that the MDC; the fact that few have applied for it; and no one has passed the preliminary test, is a crowning achievement of James Randi's career, and should be emphasized much more than the film did. It's a great "put up or shut up" moment well worth trumpeting in a hagiographic show.

And Randi's non-involvement in an actual test is deliberate, intended to defuse the obvious objections that his presence is a negative factor and will prevent any paranormal power from working. Nevertheless, the MDC was his baby AFAIK, crafted by him as the ultimate FU to charlatans.
 
Gord_in_Toronto said:
Not exactly new or unknown to long time members here.

Watch for free (Legally) on Tubi.

https://tubitv.com/movies/479036/an-honest-liar

He is missed.
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Finally caugh this on Amazon Prime.
I think it might be a bit too much oriened toward the whole Davyi affair, but sitll fascinating look at a man who was one of the great voices for reason in recent years..and is missed more then ever.
 
I heard (maybe at a talk at a TAM) that "An Honest Liar" wasn't originally focused on Deyvi's arrest, but when he was arrested while they were filming it caused them to change the focus, which required a lot of editing.
 
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