Richard Turner does not consider himself a card magician; instead, he uses the term “card mechanic.” As a mechanic fixes cars, Richard fixes a deck of cards, bending them to his whim. “What I do with cards, a magician cannot do.” After decades of practice, he has mastered a plethora of tricks and techniques that have made him one of the most respected “close-up” magicians today. From trade fairs to conferences, TV shows to intimate shows at The Magic Castle, he wows his audiences with his sleight of hand. Oh, and he happens to be blind.
The opening of this film works in a similar way to my first paragraph. It shows shots of Richard performing, closeups of his handling the cards, the amazement on the faces of his audience, then drops that little detail that makes your jaw drop just that little bit more. It’s a hell of an opening that sets the scenes for an inspiring tale about how some spirits are driven to succeed, no matter what hand they’ve been dealt.
Director Luke Korem cuts archival material from Richard’s career as an entertainer together with interviews with friends and family, as well as following the man himself over the course of several months as he travels the country showing off his talents. It reaches back to his childhood, when he contracted scarlet fever. In the aftermath of this illness, there was an onset of blurriness, then a dark spot in the center of his vision, leaving only the periphery visible, then ultimately his total loss of sight.
The roots of his card obsession stems from watching Westerns as a child, notably Maverick. The attitude and skills of its lead, as well as the lines from the theme song “living on jacks and queens,” struck a chord. Around the age of nine he was enrolled at a school for the blind. Resentment festered at being treated differently; he despised the word handicapped. But with his interest in cards known, a teacher recorded a book about card tricks on to tape and thus began his education. Practicing up to sixteen hours a day for most of his life, he carries packs of cars with him wherever he goes. They’re in his hands while he eats, sleeps, even while making love to his wife Kim, a reveal that seemed perhaps dropped in for laughs but is utterly believable. Many of these “card mechanics” excel in one routine; Richard has mastered them all. Sleight of hand, cutting, shuffling, bottom dealing, the double-lift, slide-slips, false dealing, and more. Turner was even mentored by, and won the approval of, Dai Vernon, known as “the only man to fool Houdini,” who himself adopted the moniker the “King of Cards.”
The film doesn’t just focus on his career in entertainment, but also how his past informs his character. This is a man who in his late teens was riding motorbikes, using the barely visible lines on the road to maneuver by, who won a black belt in karate with no special treatment, things alone any individual would and should be proud of. He’s also a husband and a father, family forming a big component of the film. His wife Kim and son Asa (Spades) are both instrumental to his life and career, Asa in particular serving as his right hand man, not just while touring his show, but day to day, walking the trails, or around the home, a role Kim shouldered earlier in their marriage. This fleshing out of backstory is crucial to understand the character of this man whose sheer determination drove him to live as normal, and as full, a life as possible. This was someone not really in denial that he was blind, but in denial that being blind meant that he should live his life any differently.
There is a contrast to Richard’s life in the film, his sister Lori, who sadly succumbed to the same condition as her brother. She has made a success of her own life, working in design and construction, but she approaches things differently, embracing the use of a guide-dog and technologies that Richard has long rejected despite her urging. Dealt has a rather touching coda that sees in the emotional aftermath of his son Asa leaving for college, Richard moving further along in his acceptance of his limitations, that acknowledging his blindness by accepting help isn’t showing weakness, but instead a good thing, for himself and those around him. He opens new avenues for his show by incorporating his story, while he also starts teaching children with vision impairment how to do card tricks, realizing how his achievements and attitude can inspire others. It’s pretty wonderful to see someone so full of life get a new lease of it.
Dealt is an impressively composed documentary that chronicles the life of a hell of a character in Richard Turner, a man with an infectious, indomitable spirit that will light a fire under you to try and succeed, no matter what hand you’ve been dealt.
Dealt was the recipient of the Audience Award and the Best of the Fest Cinema Dulce Award at the 2017 Hill Country Film Festival.
Dealt previously won the Audience Award at SXSW, where it was acquired by Sundance Selects for release in late 2017.