The End of My Rope – Chris Philpott
$34.95
http://www.murphysmagic.com/product.aspx?id=58163

The Hype:

From the creator of The 100th Monkey comes a new, versatile and incredibly visual method for rope magic! The magician coils a rope, and has a spectator cut through all the strands - the magician then throws the many pieces and they join in the air! The rope is never covered or switched and it can be examined before and after the effect!

The End-of-my-Rope Trick is a stunning stand-alone trick, but it's also the perfect climax for a variety of other rope routines. Chris (an award-winning screenwriter) has found a way to raise the stakes on classic rope routines while staying true to the original premise. This is a game-changer!

Can be used with a myriad of materials - from chain links to mouth coils - and with a variety of effects. It makes a perfect finish for a ring-on-string routine: you can thread a string through a ring four times then pull it right off! There are variations that require gimmicks and others that are entirely impromptu.

The End-of-my-Rope trick is not self-working, but it's not difficult. It's in the easy to medium range, depending on the variation you choose. A person with no sleight-of-hand chops can do some variations with just a few hours of practice.

And while many routines are included on this DVD, there is also incredible potential for new effects with this method

My Take:

Cut and restored rope is a classic. Many of us do it at every show. And therein lies the problem. Every audience has seen this a number of times. When you say, “Let’s start this over again”, you can see your audience mouthing the words right along with you. It is a great trick but it is getting a little tired. Then along comes someone like Chris Philpott to give it a vacation.

The test of any magic trick is how impossible it looks. Some tricks look a lot more impossible than others. This is where “The End of My Rope” fits in. When I watched the demo video, I could not believe what I was seeing. Chris took a 20 foot length of ordinary rope, coiled it up and let his spectator cut through six sections of the coil, then threw the rope out entirely restored with no moves.

Frankly I couldn’t wait to get the disk to see how it was done. And Surprise! It is not difficult at all. It is well within the abilities of anyone reading this. If you currently do a cut and restored rope routine in your act, you should consider replacing it with this. This is the type of trick that will make your audience gasp out loud. And the rope can be immediately tossed out to be examined.

Chris requests that the buyer be 18 or above. Not because there is anything objectionable about the routine but because he feels that unless the directions are followed precisely, there is a small amount of danger. In learning the procedure, I see what he means but the danger is minimal and handling it with care should alleviate any potential hazards.

By purchasing the disk, Chris offers a second trick by email. Hangman uses some of the same techniques but it is entirely impromptu. A 20 foot rope is coiled and them placed over the magician’s head around his neck. Two spectators grab each end and pulls. The rope comes right through the magician’s neck causing no damage. Once again, Chris requests the downloader be 18 or older due to the potential danger. Looks great. Easy to do. It would make a great followup to the main routine. You also receive a pdf file with scripts for End of My Rope. As a bonus you are taught the standard cut and restored in a series of really nice color photos.

Chris also states that the effect can be done with rope, string, twine, even mouth coils. That reminds me. My wife is a knitter and I think I am about to get myself into a lot of trouble.

I first became aware of Chris through his 100^th Monkey Principle and the Narcissus effect. I know that if Chris’s name is on the package, you are going to get both value and be fooled. He also partners up with Steve Valentine who is one of my all time favorite magicians.

I guarantee if you get this, it won’t be one of the disks that just ends up on your shelf. I look forward to see what else Chris will be offering the community in the future.

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