The Prestige... is a movie Directed by Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins and Memento) and stars Hugh Jackman (X-men, the Fountain) and Christian Bale (Batman Begins, American Psycho). As story begins the two men are partners as well as rival up starts working for another magician. You quickly see that they approach the craft differently and cause friction in how to execute the tricks properly. Each trick has three parts the pledge, the turn and the most important, the Prestige.
Alfred Borden (Bale) is a young prodigy and is a natural magician but lacks the flare of showmanship, what his rival, Angier (Jackman) excels in greatly. Each man has a different approach and philosophy about magic but both share the obsession of being the best. Jackman knows he’s a better showman but Borden supposedly has a brilliant show stopping trick that has never been done that he’s not yet ready to revel.
The two men first meet while both working for a magician’s assistant, played by Michael Cain. Cain’s character “Cutter” knows the talent of these two men and tried to coach them on the finer aspects of being a magician. After a horrific accident on stage the two men became more than just rivals but mortal enemies. Angier blamed Borden for the disaster and the two men go back and forth trying to not only “one up” the other but to sabotage the other mans life and career.
Nolan weaves a sophisticated story that keeps you on on the edge of your proverbial seat and like a magic trick; He gets you with “slide of hand” and leaves you wondering how you missed it. The entire movie is like a magic trick, you begin with the pledge and then the turn and in the finally… the Prestige!
One of the smartest things in the entire movie is the practical approach to showing how the tricks are performed and the idea that the trick is almost always much more simple than one would think. The real trick is to be totally commented to the craft and to never give up the trick, the method is everything.
Nolan does again, a remarkable job with humanizing the characters evolved and shows how much they are willing to risk for there obsessions. These two men grapple with love gained, lost and thrown away in many ways in this film. The subject of true sacrifice is shown in these two bitter rivals as each man looks to push his own ethics and morality to it’s limits. It’s never about money, women or even fame for these two; it’s not even discussed as a goal. Each man is obsessed with knowing he is better than the other, and will stop at nothing till he has the superior trick that leaves not only the audience scratching their heads but his rival as well. Even if it means he will lose everything to get the satisfaction.
In my opinion, one of the best movies of 2006 and even thou nominated for two Oscars, was over looked by most movie goes and critics. The acting in the Prestige is brilliant without being too bold. The two main characters are supported by some great performances by Scarlet Johansson, Rebecca Hall, Piper Perabo, Andy Sirkis and David Bowie as the scientist Tesla.
The mark of any great movie is how many times it takes you to watch it and catch something new and at the same time be entertained. This movie has these traits in spades. This movie solidifies for me the genius that is Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan (who wrote the screenplay). First was Following, Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins, and now the Prestige, Mr. Nolan is batting a 1.000 in my book. A master storyteller and knows exactly how much to show and when to show it. Maybe if Christopher Nolan was born in the late 1800’s he would have been a magician.
This movie is the newest addition to my top 100 movies and my favorite movie of 2006
Alfred Borden (Bale) is a young prodigy and is a natural magician but lacks the flare of showmanship, what his rival, Angier (Jackman) excels in greatly. Each man has a different approach and philosophy about magic but both share the obsession of being the best. Jackman knows he’s a better showman but Borden supposedly has a brilliant show stopping trick that has never been done that he’s not yet ready to revel.
The two men first meet while both working for a magician’s assistant, played by Michael Cain. Cain’s character “Cutter” knows the talent of these two men and tried to coach them on the finer aspects of being a magician. After a horrific accident on stage the two men became more than just rivals but mortal enemies. Angier blamed Borden for the disaster and the two men go back and forth trying to not only “one up” the other but to sabotage the other mans life and career.
Nolan weaves a sophisticated story that keeps you on on the edge of your proverbial seat and like a magic trick; He gets you with “slide of hand” and leaves you wondering how you missed it. The entire movie is like a magic trick, you begin with the pledge and then the turn and in the finally… the Prestige!
One of the smartest things in the entire movie is the practical approach to showing how the tricks are performed and the idea that the trick is almost always much more simple than one would think. The real trick is to be totally commented to the craft and to never give up the trick, the method is everything.
Nolan does again, a remarkable job with humanizing the characters evolved and shows how much they are willing to risk for there obsessions. These two men grapple with love gained, lost and thrown away in many ways in this film. The subject of true sacrifice is shown in these two bitter rivals as each man looks to push his own ethics and morality to it’s limits. It’s never about money, women or even fame for these two; it’s not even discussed as a goal. Each man is obsessed with knowing he is better than the other, and will stop at nothing till he has the superior trick that leaves not only the audience scratching their heads but his rival as well. Even if it means he will lose everything to get the satisfaction.
In my opinion, one of the best movies of 2006 and even thou nominated for two Oscars, was over looked by most movie goes and critics. The acting in the Prestige is brilliant without being too bold. The two main characters are supported by some great performances by Scarlet Johansson, Rebecca Hall, Piper Perabo, Andy Sirkis and David Bowie as the scientist Tesla.
The mark of any great movie is how many times it takes you to watch it and catch something new and at the same time be entertained. This movie has these traits in spades. This movie solidifies for me the genius that is Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan (who wrote the screenplay). First was Following, Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins, and now the Prestige, Mr. Nolan is batting a 1.000 in my book. A master storyteller and knows exactly how much to show and when to show it. Maybe if Christopher Nolan was born in the late 1800’s he would have been a magician.
This movie is the newest addition to my top 100 movies and my favorite movie of 2006
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