The Prestige (2006)

The Worst Film Ever

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Just because Nolan made 1. Interstellar (an epic space movie) 2. Dark night (First of it kind comic movie) 3. Inception (Truely masterpiece)This movie will always be counted after many of his title, when people will remembering his best workThis movie is masterpiece at every front:1. Character motivations 2. Rivalry (can't be this realistic) 3. Performances for actors, everyone was terrific 4. Cinematography, this movie is so easy on eyes 5. Editing, the less I say the best, masterfully doneAnd ofcourse, screenplay I have seen it many times, and everytime the revelations from/via diary and magic acts amazes me

Rivalry between two magicians is a new concept explored by Christopher Nolan. It's originality is it's strength. It's weakness is it's predictability. Two and half hours long , but I still found this engaging till end. But the ending didn't go well with me. The ending is not exactly the ending . It gave away all the plot in about 2/3rd of movie. It was already known that Angier uses a double and that Borden must have used one . That double being a twin is not a surprise. And that the machine produces an another double is quite obvious when Angie dropped the hat and Tesla said 'All are yours'. And was it that difficult to tell Olivia that they were twins? Only good twist at the end was Angier being Lord Cadlow. I like the movie only for the first 110 minutes and not for the last 20. Due to Nolan's fine storytelling. The only bad part is when it tries to be intelligent without having that sort of story.

The film "The Prestige" is directed by Christopher Nolan in the year 2006. The basis of the film is adapted from the screenplay from 1995 by Christopher Priest which was also based on the novel of the same name. The novel won the World Fantasy award and was famous in the world of entertainment on its unique platform. Victorian London is the place where the movie took place, by keeping it in mind that at the following time and place, and black magic were believed in by the credulous. Somerset Maugham's novel The Magician captures that period perfectly in its fictional portrait of Aleister Crawley, "the evilest man in the world", in which the illusion is created of the one being really an occult practitioner of dark forces. The Prestige is also plotted on the basis of illusion and magic which contains a touch of rivalry and passion. The movie has twist after twist which leads it to be successful in the film world. There are points when it will look like the movie has come to its conclusion; however, it is full of turns that keep the viewers engaged. The Duality, obsession, sacrifice, and secrecy pervading the conflict are the basic theme of the movie. The main characters are Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman), Alfred Borden (Christopher Bale), Oliva Wenscombe (Scarlett Johansson ) and John Cutter (Micheal Caine). All of these characters have strong interpersonal relationships. "The Prestige" has almost about everything that is required in a movie about the world of magicians, except the prestige itself. The briefing by Michael Caine claims that every magic trick consists of three acts: (1) the pledge, an initial step in which a portrait of real situation gets set; (2) the turn, which is about challenging the initial reality; and (3) the prestige, where everything gets back to the normal and set situation again. The director tried his best to push the boundaries of their jaw-dropping parlour trick, from which the coherence of the movie's concept seems to be compromised due to the element of bunk. The film "The Prestige" is rated PG-13 (parents strongly cautioned) since it has some violent scenes and a scary, menacing atmosphere; however, it is highly rated by the viewers. Overall, this movie is a serious enigma, but I highly recommend that everyone watches this movie as its very entertaining and puzzling.

I won't say it's an underrated movie, but it has somewhat been buried by the legacy of other "popular" Nolan movies. With this movie, Nolan shows his ability to make a metacinematic film, yet again. This is obviously my most favorite Christopher Nolan movie, along with "Memento" (2000). Just like you can relate the theme of memories and interpretations shown in the story of "Memento" with the actual experience we had while watching the movie, we can relate the three acts of a magic trick narrated within the story with the movie itself. As the movie says, the final reveal in a magic trick is the most thrilling experience. So is that of this movie. In fact, the whole movie can be weirdly related to a magic trick. It is one of those movies which feel quite ordinary until a major twist makes it great. Speaking of the cinematic experience, it is a typical Nolan styled movie. It has broken timelines to enhance the storytelling, but unlike in most of his movies these are done more artistically than just for the thrilling reveal. This is perhaps the movie where Nolan's broken timelines have enhanced the storytelling in the most brilliant way. Like in most of movies, he dwells in a single theme - here it's obsession. The obsession of Robert Angier is what drives the plot of the movie, and is well established and doesn't even feel forced. There is a protagonist, and an antagonist in this movie. The character development is done so smoothly that we see the protagonist become an antagonist, while the antagonist remains somewhat the same. Though we don't get a full "interchange" between the antagonist and the protagonist, as the movie progresses, the protagonist feels more "wrong" than the antagonist. That's quite a difficult thing that it pulls off. Alfred Bordon is one of the most "complex" characters I have ever seen. He feels like some kind of a prick throughout the movie, and there are a lot of scenes to establish it for the viewers. That's until we get to know his character in the third act. It doesn't make him right for his wrong doings, but he gets the respect for his dedication as a magician. The whole Tesla plotline might feel like a convenient plot device, but Tesla is a scientist who is rumoured to travel through time. So, that is quite justifiable. Hugh Jackman has given a solid performance. This must go down as his best performances with those of "Prisoners" (2013) and "Logan" (2017). He is completely out of his public persona of Wolverine. He is the best possible choice for Wolverine imo, but reminder of Wolverine every time he appears on screen isn't so adorable. He didn't remind me of Wolverine at all, in this movie. But, the major highlight of the movie would be Christian Bale. He has given a terrific performance. You don't even get a hint at the complexity of the character he is portraying. It's after the reveal and in fact, in the second viewing that you start noticing the actual stuffs and the actual interpretations a particular scene is to be given. All in all, it's a fantastic movie. The way obsession play out to be the main theme, the way broken timelines are used for storytelling and the way the final twist is revealed - simply excellent. It gets a special "10/10" and an "A+".