Patrik Kuffs is a popular Canadian magician and mentalist who is rarely seen by his fellow magi. As such, magicians may well gloss over the ads for this tape, and that’s a shame, since it is chock full of excellent, real-world goodies!

When I was doing restaurant work on a regular basis, I often performed a quick spoon-bend at the table, delivering it in a throwaway fashion, then leaving the gnarled cutlery as a souvenir. Despite how quickly the effect went by, and how little focus I gave it, it was frequently one of the most talked-about tricks of the set. Having said that, Patrik really delivers the goods on this tape, explaining over a dozen impromptu techniques, all of which are practical, performable treats. One-Handed Bends, Two-Handed Bends, Table Bends, Leg Bends, Reverse Bends, Bends as You Toss the Spoon into a Spectator’s Purse (or Pocket), Twisted Bends, Fork-Tine Bends (these look very cool), and more! Then, once he has taught the techniques, Pat goes on to show you how you can use them in combination, performing makeshift routines (called “Sample Performances”) with a special guest, using nothing more than a pile of cutlery and some improvisational skills. These are extremely useful segments, and really give you a sense of how powerful this material can be. And be sure to watch them carefully, because Patrik throws in a handful of new techniques, including some fabulous methods for apparently causing the bowl of the spoon to melt right off! These are all explained in follow-up segments.

The tape concludes with a “Discussion on Metal Bending” between Patrik and guest host, Martin Carli. The discussion produces some revealing tips and more tricks with cutlery from someone who clearly lives, eats and breathes this stuff.

This is an excellent, densely-packed video, and definitely of use to anyone who does close-up magic.

David Acer