Beystiman It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

SanEat A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Gurlyndrobb While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Dan Franzen (dfranzen70) Magic Trip is a real-time documentary, cobbled together from 40-year-old film, about a cross-country trek just prior to the big hippie invasions of the mid-to-late 1960s. It's a time capsule, and it's a highly informative one for those of us who weren't there. It's a jumping-off point to explain the lovefests, the Be-Ins, the protests, the marches, the Woodstocks, and the Altamonts. It's a relic of its time as well, but it's also a genuine look at a mostly far-gone time.It's 1964. The sixties, we're told, didn't really begin in 1960 (or 1961) but rather in November of 1963, when Kennedy was killed. The nation's innocence was lost, and the younger souls - our baby boomers - looked for something to help guide them into the future. The plastic days of picket-fenced houses and nuclear families were disappearing. People needed something new. That something new, it turned out, was LSD - a perfectly legal substance at the time.Ken Kesey was the author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, a writer of some reknown. In '63, he and a few friends were visiting New York City and witnessed the preparations for the following year's World's Fair. Kesey, who lived in Oregon, determined on the spot that he'd grab some people and make a trip across America to the fair. The group would up too big for a station wagon, so an old International Harvester bus was procured and customized, including plenty of filming equipment. The bus was painted in an array of bright, friendly, psychedelic colors, and off they went.The group called itself the Merry Pranksters, and everyone had his or her own nickname. Along for the ride was Neil Cassady. Never heard of him? You should read Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road; the character of Dean Moriarity was based on Cassady. Cassady was a real character, a speed-taking oddity who drove like a maniac and had zillions of stories to tell. All he needed was an audience.Like most documentaries, this movie will be enjoyed best by those who were present during that era and by those who wish they were. If you're not emotionally invested in the story, you might think you're watching a bunch of wackos on drugs careen about the country, having sex every three seconds and dropping acid. You'd be right, but you might not enjoy it much. And surely not as much as the participants did.If I recall, the movie uses nothing but the footage shot during the trip to New York, with some new narration by actor Stanley Tucci. This lends quite the feel of veritas to the proceedings; it's exactly like watching home movies, at least if your family is a little deranged. But drugs or not, what's interesting is that we see hardly any real conflicts - people get along, for the most part, even when some leave the trip before reaching the final destination. It's a good-vibe film, and none of it feels manufactured.I guess that's what I find most appealing about Magic Trip. It's honest, and it's fun. It gives you a glimpse into those sometimes twisted times - times, it should be noted, look like a cakewalk compared to what we have now. In '64, we weren't even heavily into Vietnam, and the anti- hippie tone had yet to sweep the nation. The bus got pulled over numerous times, but since hippiedom was so new, cops just figured the occupants were college kids out having fun. Ah, for those times now.

jackbenimble I read Tom Wolfe's novel and was pretty impressed. I watched this movie and wasn't. In the novel the pranksters have a clear underlying philosophy to their antics and as such mark an important historical beginning of the 60's youth counterculture. In the novel there is a recurring theme railing against the crass materialism of America at the time and a continuation of the artistic beat movement of the 50's. In the movie we're pretty much simply given an advert for LSD. As I understood it drugs and sex were used as a MEANS to a greater understanding and a new philosophy of life. But what we witness in this film is simply irresponsible self gratification and mindless hedonism which I guess is what eventually burnt the 60's out. Maybe Wolfe made it all up and this film represents the reality? If so it was a big disappointment for me. I'm with Kerouac on this one. I'd share a beer with him on that sofa in New York and have a good moan about what a bunch of irritating,vain, stupid,shallow, self indulgent pricks they all were.

timbermisc This is a home movie without producer, director, script or a casting director. Originally it was 100 hours long; You read right. Repeat: 100 hours long. Here it is cut down to 90 minutes. It should not be compared in category to professional documentaries in terms of ratings or quality. It has it's own category. It was never meant to be shown in a professional theater. However, it was screened in a professional theater in San Francisco and New York for a short length of time, about 10 days. I saw it in San Francisco in a theater. I liked it. And another viewer I interviewed liked it. She said to me, "I remember THOSE PEOPLE on the campus at Stanford." It was made for Ken Kesey's friends to "goof on" while they took psychedelic drugs, socialized, and stayed overnight at Kesey's home in La Honda, CA. It's a feel-good home movie to be seen on a Sunday afternoon. It will not send you on an LSD trip. The added blues, jazz, rock music with graphics tie this home movie together, and embellish it. It was more than I expected as a result of these additions. Also you will see Martin Luther King, the JFK assassination, and civil rights movie clips. That day JFK was shot certainly evoked the emotions you will see in this film. I know, I was "there" and 16 years old at this time. Please understand that early 1964 was a very sad time, complete with the Russians threatening nuclear war against the U.S. every month. The Vietnam War was beginning. There were civil riots and angry people in the streets. And young people wanted some happiness in their lives, somehow. They wanted to play, be crazy, have some fun before getting married. Many found it with Ken Kesey. This movie has added narration that sometimes reveal a truth, a judgment, about the characters on board the bus named "Further". This message is not always positive; these comments add some depth to these characters of the 60s. And this would be the major reason you would want to see this film. The soundtrack for the voices of the friends in the movie is mostly out of sync. However, remember that "being out of sync" and "tripping on Acid" may be similar. So, it didn't bother me. It just seemed like a variation on a Beat poem. If you look quickly, you will see the first "Flower Girl" seated on the grass. Yes, with flowers in her hair. All this before the Beatles, and hippy-ism. There is no violence, sex, crash-bang action or flaming car crashes. People in the file were given theatrical names like: "Stark Naked". They then traveled across the U.S. like gypsies. You should be interested in history to best enjoy this film. Kesey personally took the first LSD "trips" in a hospital as a volunteer; and he was recorded on tape. Hear those original tapes in this movie. His "trip" is supported with inspired graphics so that the viewer can feel that he/she is also "tripping" for 2 minutes. However, the rest of the movie is not an "LSD trip" for the viewer of this film. The movie poster "The Magic Trip" is more embellished and "tripy" than this movie is. Clearly the "magic" part is happening in the heads of the friends who are depicted in this movie. The viewer of the movie will not reach the "heights" that these people are experiencing. This is a home movie created with (3) 16mm film cameras held by intoxicated adults. The viewing can be shaky, rocky; but it is all in good focus. The film is not grainy. This film does not overtly promote drug usage. The undesirable effects of drugs are also presented in this film. Amazing that they could live film police stopping them on the highways. Not all of the pranksters "made it" to New York. One woman didn't. She's the one who fell in the pond in the middle of nowhere (actually Wikieup, AZ) to immediately find that the water was clearer than before; underwater she could see everywhere farther and clearer on LSD. And she could talk to slim. And all of the slim beings in the pond could finally talk to a human being for the first time. And she found that we can now be friends with slim beings. The pranksters named her "Miss Slim of 1964". This film is a lot of innocent fun played out by adults in short hair styles. This a home movie which belongs in the Smithsonian Institute. It is a very gentle movie with a cast of friends. Just remember: all this happened before the hippies ever were "created". This film was used as entertainment for Ken Kesey's friends who visited him overnight in his home while they played with psychedelic drugs. The film highlights Ken Kesey's novel briefly: "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. It all ends with a pleasant message about the 60s and Ken Kesey's private life and marriage. If you want to complete your knowledge of the 1960's, you must see this film.

goodbyeenemyairship I only had 2 issues with the film as presented - 1) the film moves at a breakneck pace trying to cram what was likely hundreds of hours of film into 90 minutes; I wanted many scenes to last longer - 2) I would've liked a 'where are they now' sort of bookend for more of the pranksters (only Kesey's and Cassady's post-prankster lives are detailed).I thought the footage was gorgeous - the film must've been well taken care of over the years. It was really fascinating to see America circa 1964 in full color (most footage from that era is black & white).I want to re-read The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test after buying this DVD and refer back and forth. It really does breathe new life into Tom Wolfe's book; although, the film stands on its own.One of the most fascinating segments of the film was early on when they delved into how Kesey was turned onto LSD. They describe the whole experience and provide audio recordings taken as Kesey was under the influence in a hospital where LSD experiments were being conducted.I understand many will take issue with the pro-drug message, but whether you like it or not, the subject of the film and the footage itself is a big part of history. There is something to learn and appreciate no matter where you stand.