Lost in the Shuffle: Solving a Murder in Your Card Deck

Have you ever looked closely at the King of Hearts and wondered why he looks like he’s stabbing himself? Or why the Queen of Spades is the only one looking away? “Lost in the Shuffle” will answer all of these questions.

If you love cards as much as we do at Somuchpoker , you’re going to love “Lost in the Shuffle“.This new documentary, directed by Jon Ornoy, isn’t your typical history movie. It’s a fast-paced journey that treats a standard deck of cards like a 500-year-old mystery waiting to be solved.

A Murder Mystery in Your Pocket?

The star of the film is Shawn Farquhar, a world-champion magician who has spent his whole life with cards. While most of us are focused on hitting a flush or a straight, Shawn noticed something strange about the “court cards” (the Kings, Queens, and Jacks).

Director Jon Ornoy explains that the film follows Shawn as he tries to prove a wild theory: that the art on our cards actually tells the story of a real-life murder from the 1400s. Shawn believes the King of Hearts represents King Charles VIII of France, and that his death wasn’t an accident.

“The hook is Shawn Farquhar’s theory that there is a cold case murder mystery hidden in the deck,” Ornoy told PokerNews. “Specifically, that the King of Hearts, the ‘Suicide King,’ didn’t kill himself, but was actually murdered by his wife, and that the evidence of this is hidden in the design of the cards we use every day.”

Legends in the Lost in the Shuffle

To find the truth, the film travels across the globe to speak with the best card handlers alive. Ornoy wanted to move past simple card tricks and show the true art form:

“I wanted to make a film that treated card magic with the same respect that we treat other performing arts like ballet or opera,” Ornoy said. “These performers aren’t just doing ‘tricks’; they are masters of psychology, sleight of hand, and storytelling.”

The poker documentary features legendary names like:

• Richard Turner: A “card mechanic” who is world-famous for his ability to control a deck, even though he is completely blind.
• Juan Tamariz: A master of card magic from Spain who shows how cards capture our imagination.
• Alexandra Duvivier & Michael Vincent: Elite performers who explain why we are still obsessed with these 52 pieces of paper after hundreds of years.

Why This Matters for Poker Fans

While the movie focuses on magic and history, it’s a “must-watch” for anyone who sits at a poker table. The film illustrates how playing cards evolved from simple gambling tools to the high-quality decks used in casinos today. It explores the psychology of the shuffle and why the cards’ design has remained largely unchanged for centuries.

By the end of the film, you’ll never look at a “Suicide King” the same way again. It turns out that every time we deal a hand of poker, we might be holding the clues to a 500-year-old crime.