The Unfolding

I don't really have that much time to right a really thorough review like I normally would, but I really wanted to get this out there.

Paul Carnazzo's The Unfolding

This is a brilliant mentalism effect. This is exactly what happens: you lay down 3 or 4 pictures perhaps of your own creation or from the ones that came with the package. You ask a female spectator to take one, a male spectator to take another, and the third one will go to you. The backs of the image indicate, 100%, who gets which picture. No force, no annoying equivoque, just 100%.

Now this really does sound too good to be true. There are some language restrictions which Mr. Carnazzo discusses in the instructions. There are ways to bypass this, however, and that's exactly what I do since I usually perform for one person at a time. There are also alternative presentations that almost 100% remove the language barrier and eliminate the need for more than one spectator. For instance, in a murder mystery theme I'm working on, I have laid out 4 different murder weapons, and the spectator tells me which one she or he believes the murderer used. He/she points to one, and it is says on the back "This is the murder weapon used." Every other picture says "This is NOT the murder weapon used." Again, 100%.

The other downside, besides the language barrier, is that the pictures are not for the greedy touchy-feely spectator. You need some decent audience management skills. They can briefly look and hold the pictures but, though I haven't run into this issue yet, they might accidently do something to the photos which could reveal how it's done though the chances of that are minimal. So, as long as you're careful about how they handle the pictures, you will be fine. If they choose not to touch it and just want to look at them really, really carefully, you won't have any issues at all.

One way I've used is using a mini stand for each of the pictures and turning the photos around. The display gives them this "museum" feel, so I feel like a spectator is less likely to grab them, rather than touch them. I also subtly hint that these are nice quality photos (they are, for real).

Really, if you like what the description says, you get exactly that. It's a great method that eliminates the equivoque in exchange for slightly less examinability (still mostly examinable). I can't imagine anyone going wrong with this purchase. It's brilliant.

Pros: Solid presentational line, allows for great creativity, no equivoque or forcing, 100% end result
Cons: Spectator cannot examine super thoroughly though you can get around it, reset is not instant and needs a few seconds alone.