In & Of Itself

Starring: Derek DelGaudio
Directed by: Frank Oz
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Documentary
2020

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Derek DelGaudio performs his one-man show that combines conceptual magic with a search for identity and meaning.

Review:

Tim: I loved Derek DelGaudio's In & Of Itself. I'd read DelGaudio's book, Amorlman and was impressed with his insight and vulnerability. I kept hearing really good things about this movie, so I finally checked it out. It's a documentary (directed brilliantly by Frank Oz) that pulls together footage from numerous shows that DelGaudio put on in New York City. These scenes are stitched together to let us experience the show and also to show how different it was each night. This is one of the things I most loved about this documentary. I'd never heard of the show but I desperately wish I could have attended. I missed my chance to be there in person, but I was able to experience it through this film. And what a journey it was.

It's still hard for me to fully grasp what I witnessed here. It's performative art, conceptual magic, combined with philosophy, self-reflection, while showing love and care for others. The movie shows all this as it's presented to the audience and I have to say, I appreciate that DelGaudio wasn't interested in spoon-feeding the audience. I've asked myself numerous times, "What exactly did I just watch?" "Was it truly profound, or unnecessarily dense?" "What it did mean?" I really appreciate the complexity of the show, even when it feels a bit too obtuse. That just adds to the mystique and the intrigue cloaking the entire film. I might not have answers, but it's a spellbinding, thought-provoking journey. DelGaudio is a master storyteller and I absolutely loved seeing him on stage here.

There's really two different aspects to this film that work well together. The first is the conceptual magic, the sleight of hand deceptions that DelGaudio performs. I was somewhat familiar with DelGaudio's journey and mastery of these techniques from Amorlman (a book I'd highly recommend), but it was astonishing to see it on screen. These were among my favorite moments of the entire film. There were so many instances where I just exclaimed, "How the hell did he do that?" DelGaudio is a genius in this sense. The highlight for me was shuffling the deck of cards and somehow arranging them in order. It's one of the most impressive sleight of hand performances I have ever seen. The letters at the end were astounding as well. I just loved that DelGaudio was able to create so many moments where you're just in awe of what he is doing on stage.

The second aspect that works exceptionally well is DelGaudio asking big questions about identity, meaning, life. Some of these become difficult to follow, but they are spell-binding nonetheless. The story of the Rouletista is powerful, even if I acknowledge I likely haven't fully processed it yet. DelGaudio is a master storyteller and I loved the vulnerability and the emotion he showed on stage. I was somewhat familiar with his penchant for this from his book, but it's something else to see it on screen. I loved this exploration of what it means to be human and I admit it made me self-reflect as well. The brilliance of this film is combining these two elements- the magic and the introspection together. I read something that called DelGaudio a "meta magician" and I believe that's an apt description.

Now, I've been raving about DelGaudio's show, but this is a review about the movie. Frank Oz does an outstanding job directing this. Truly, as much as I loved the show, it needed exceptional direction to be great and that's what it got. This is most apparent when Oz rapidly shows clips from different shows. I can't stress enough how amazing this is. You get to see not just one show, but how DelGaudio adjusts and flexes for each audience. The broad strokes are the same, but the people are different. This gives us insight into the show that you'd never get from only attending one in person. Oz's direction makes you forget that you're watching a movie at times- you're so engrossed in the action on screen that it feels like you're there.

A few final notes before the close- this film opened at several festivals in 2020, but it wasn't released on Hulu until 2021. Normally, I'd use the official wide opening as the date for the film, but it competed in 2020 and that pandemic year was such a miserable year for movies. I'm going to count this film as 2020, when it was first released. Last boring note- I didn't include the famous faces that show up in the audience in the "Starring" portion of this review. I normally would, but who cares if Bill Gates attended a show? This film is about DelGaudio's performance, so I've left everyone else out.

I really loved In & Of Itself. Derek DelGaudio is a fascinating human being and he created something I don't fully understand, but I loved being a small part of. This documentary is excellent and I'd loudly recommend it to everyone.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



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