"An Honest Liar" - The Amazing Randi Story

[Orphia Nay]

"An Honest Liar profiles the life of famed magician turned professional skeptic James “The Amazing” Randi as he embarks on a series of public crusades to expose America’s beloved psychics, mentalists, preachers, and faith healers with religious fervor. Along the way, the film will show how easily our perceptions can be fooled – by magicians, con artists, and even documentaries."

http://www.anhonestliar.com/anhonestliar/Home.html

Kylie Sturgess (Token Skeptic) interviews the directors/producers of the movie here:
http://tokenskeptic.org/2012/02/18/episode-one-hundred-and-eight-on-james-randis-an-honest-liar-interview-with-justin-weinstein-and-tyler-measom/
(Listening to it now.)

I gather the film is still being made, but from what I've heard, it sounds like (http://www.anhonestliar.com/anhonestliar/The_Story.html) it will be made well. I may even donate (http://www.anhonestliar.com/anhonestliar/Contribute.html).

They're also looking for documentary/video evidence that may not be available in the public sphere.

[lionking]

Thanks ON. I wonder who will pick it up. I can't imagine a theatrical release, but hopefully it will get good coverage.

[ieathedead]

I watched the trailer a few times today and it looks fantastic. I don't know too much about the filmmakers' other work so I'll have to investigate that tonight but so far to my untrained eye, it looks really good. The website looks really nice too.

From the website:
An Honest Liar will likely be released sometime in 2013.

Now we play the waiting game...

i

p.s - I'm just a poor uni student and I'm also considering donating. This film looks like a ten kinds of awesome.

ETA: Clicking through the tabs up the top in order (home, the story, etc.), Randi looks like the stages I go through when I'm being told something from the woo side. It goes from an interested look, to a skeptical look, to an angry look, to being fed up and not even looking at the person, to putting his head in his hands in frustration.

Talk about useless observations :) Great photos though, they really make the website.

[Orphia Nay]

:D I like your observations, ieathedead. :)

[AdMan]

Also being discussed here (http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=230381) (though this is probably a better subforum for it).

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Contribute, you cheap bastards!!! (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/220588101/an-honest-liar-the-amazing-randi-story)

[Buckaroo]

Today, Randi himself faces the price of a deception that might result in the loss of his partner of 26 years.

Huh? :confused:

[AdMan]

Huh? :confused:

A bit off-topic, but if you really don't know:

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=218996

[Biff Starbuck]

I pledged to the Kickstarter campaign and started receiving the email updates, including one regarding the contest on IndieWire (http://www.indiewire.com/article/project-of-the-day-gay-magician-the-amazing-randy-comes-out-and-faces-the-system-in-an-honest-liar) about which of the four contenders in the contest will get free consultation with the Tribeca Film Institute. Winning would also probably add free publicity.

What annoyed me about the IndieWire contest was their headline description of the film: "Project of the Day: Gay Magician The Amazing Randi Comes Out and Faces the System in 'An Honest Liar.'"

I am happy Randi felt comfortable coming out a few years ago, but think his sexual orientation is just one facet of his life. Plus, it came out so late in his life it is a very small part of his public persona. Randi is my hero because of his relentless crusade to protect people from a myriad of unscrupulous con-artists willing to prey on the innocent. He was my hero before I even considered his sexuality, and still is today, perhaps even more so.

Certainly, the inclusion in the documentary about the troubles Randi and Davyi (aka Jose) faced after Dayvi's arrest adds to the drama, and probably makes the documentary more commerically viable. And Randi's coming out might have been nudged by the news of the arrest and relationship. However, I just think that one sentence description is a cheap PR gimmick instead of what Randi's life is about. Given that I pledge based upon the content of the trailer, I also hope it is not an accurate synopsis of the film, which should focus on his legacy as a crusador against fraud.

Hopefully the IndieWire website is the one who came up with that tag line, not the film makers.

[FluffyPersian]

Randi's gay? That's the first I've heard of it.

[theprestige]

Is there any reason anybody should ******* care?

[StankApe]

up to $151,717!!!

[zooterkin]

They were filming at TAM 9, including at the volunteer lunch. I've therefore contributed in the hope of seeing myself on the big screen. :D

[Biff Starbuck]

And most importantly, since I already pledged a donation to help get it distributed and get my own copy of the movie, I want more people to chip in so I get the free bonus of the custom playing cards too :D

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/220588101/an-honest-liar-the-amazing-randi-story

[Buckaroo]

A bit off-topic, but if you really don't know:

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=218996

Oh, that! I'd totally forgotten about it. And the overloading of the terms "lose" and "partner" threw me.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

They were filming at TAM 9, including at the volunteer lunch. I've therefore contributed in the hope of seeing myself on the big screen. :D

Do you mean TAM 10? Because they were there, and I talked to them for about 20 minutes. Were they also at TAM 9?

[AdMan]

Do you mean TAM 10? Because they were there, and I talked to them for about 20 minutes. Were they also at TAM 9?

Yup, they were at TAM 9 too.

[FluffyPersian]

Is there any reason anybody should ******* care?

Not particularly. My point is that Biff's post is the first I've heard anything about Randi's sexual orientation.

[StankApe]

up to $181,000!!!

[Biff Starbuck]

Yea! "An Honest Liar" won as the January project of the month!

http://www.indiewire.com/article/congrats-to-an-honest-liar-januarys-project-of-the-month

Since it looks like donations have slowed down and I might not get the free pack of cards, I will probably have to chip in another $25 donation to ensure I receive a set.

The Kickstarter project page is here (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/220588101/an-honest-liar-the-amazing-randi-story) for anyone who wants to not only get a copy of the film, but help support its production.

[zooterkin]

Do you mean TAM 10? Because they were there, and I talked to them for about 20 minutes. Were they also at TAM 9?

Not sure if I saw them at TAM 10; they definitely didn't film at the volunteer lunch that year. They did film it at TAM9.

[Biff Starbuck]

WooHoo! Over $200k. I guess I added to that by bumping up my pledge :D

[Biff Starbuck]

Yea! The final tally looks to be:

3,096 backers
$246,989

[Minarvia]

I stumbled upon the project by accident and got in my pledge in the final few hours. And...woo hoo! I'm getting a signed book by Randi and some of the other cool stuff. I can't wait until the film is completed. :yahoo

[zooterkin]

The Kickstarter is now closed, with a fantastic final total of $246,989, but it's still possible to contribute and get some of the rewards at the project site (http://www.anhonestliar.com/).