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Griffin O'Neal, Raul Julia, Teri Garr, Joan Hackett, Gabriel Dell ... see more see more... , Desi Arnaz , John P. Ryan , Elizabeth Daily , M. Emmet Walsh , Jackie Coogan , Harry Anderson , Harry Caesar , Helen Page Camp , David Clennon , Isabelle Cooley , Carlin Glynn , Huntz Hall , Margaret Ladd , Doug McGrath , Tom Signorelli , Hal Williams , Sandy Gimpel , Garry Marshall , George Brengel , George Cantero , Harry Cohn , Tom Mahoney

The Escape Artist represents the laudable directorial debut of cinematographer Caleb Deschanel. Griffin O'Neal, the real-life son of Ryan O'Neal, plays Danny Masters, the offspring of a famed magician... read more read more.... Determined to match his dad's accomplishment, Danny runs into nothing but trouble. His biggest mistake is picking the pocket of the son of a corrupt town mayor. When not running from adults, the boy is being exploited by them. A critic's favorite, Escape Artist has slowly built up a cult following over the years, thanks largely to its eclectic supporting cast, including Raul Julia, Desi Arnaz Jr., Joan Hackett, Teri Garr, Jackie Coogan, Huntz Hall and M. Emmet Walsh. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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44% liked it

1,258 ratings

PG, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: Caleb Deschanel

Release Date: May 28, 1982

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DVD Release Date: October 25, 2005

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Flixster Reviews (32)

  • ajv2688
    January 12, 2011
    ajv2688
    An interesting movie about a young magician, and it has a good cast, but it gets real confusing at times. Good, but it could be better.
  • gator681
    December 4, 2009
    gator681
    "The Escape Artist" starts promisingly enough with teenager Danny Masters(Griffin O'Neal)walking into a newspaper office, claiming that he can break out of a jail in an hour. This makes sense considering that his father was a master escape artist which runs in the family as Dann... read morey runs away from his grandmother towards his Aunt Sibyl(Joan Hackett) and Uncle Burke(Gabriel Dell) who have their own stage magic act that is complicated by Sibyl's psychic abilities.

    All of which are the ingredients for an offbeat and winning movie but alas that's not the case here as "The Escape Artist" is undermined by pedestrian direction and Danny's convoluted involvement with municipal corruption that he first encounters when he steals a wallet from Stu Quinones(a miscast Raul Julia), the son of the mayor(Desiderio Arnaz). While one could conceivably make a case for Danny and Stu joining forces, it is a tenuous connection at best.
  • The80sExpert
    July 13, 2010
    The80sExpert
    This movie has an amazing collection of great actors: Raul Julia, Teri Garr, Desi Arnaz, Elizabeth Daily, M. Emmet Walsh. But then the whole movie is more amazing than I can believe. Sometimes this magic movie got me confused as to what was happening on screen, especially in ke... read morey scenes. And is it just me or does the main character, played by O'Neal, look younger than his character is supposed to be? I found out he was about 16 when they made the movie, but he looks 12 or 13. It was interesting to see Raul Julia as Desi Arnaz's son, and him acting like a kid, but I wanted to see more of him. Overall, a so-so movie, but it is cute, I'll give it that.
  • nicholasvargo1
    September 21, 2007
    nicholasvargo1
    The same year Francis Ford Coppola released 'One From the Heart', he also presented 'The Escape Artist', a fantasy about magic co-written by Melissa Matheson, who wrote 'E.T.', and directed by cinematographer Caleb Deschanel (the father of actress Zooey Deschanel) from a book by ... read moreDavid Wagoner. The story centers around Danny Masters (Griffin O'Neal, the son of Ryan O'Neal) who wants to be an escape artist, just like his father (Harry Anderson), who was second only to Houdini. Then, everything goes awry when he pickpockets the wallet of the mayor's son Stu (Raul Julia), which had important things in it belonging to his father, who is the corrupt mayor (Desi Arnez). Soon, he is mixed up in business he shouldn't be in, but he begins to find out what really happened to his father and who he can really trust in the world. It might not sound interesting, but it is worth a look nonetheless. The best thing about this movie, besides most of the performances, is the music score by Georges Delerue (who composed the music for 'A Little Romance' and 'Joe Versus The Volcano'), which is so beauttiful that I wouldn't be surprised as the movie was ending to find you hunmming it. That's how good it is. It's an interesting undiscovered gem that is wonderful to watch. Give it a try.

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Critic Reviews

David Nusair
November 2, 2011
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews

...the movie's pervasive lack of drama or tension results in a palpably flat atmosphere that proves disastrous... Full Review

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
February 4, 2004
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

The Escape Artist is a riveting film about a son trying to prove himself to his father. Full Review

February 23, 2012
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

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  • I've been a sexy secret agent, a clever escape artist, a king, and was the voice of a dragon... Who am I?  Answer »
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