El gran truco

I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Christopher Nolan can do no wrong. Teaming up again with his Batman Begins cast of Christian Bale and Michael Caine, and joined with the Scoop team consisting of X-Men's Wolverinie Hugh Jackman and Scarlett Johansson, the stellar (eye candy) cast already set tongues wagging as to whether they'll be able to live up to the hype of Nolan's long awaited movie directly challenging the other picture about Victorian magicians, The Illusionist. The Prestige is the third act of any magic trick, with the first and second acts being the Pledge and the Turn. And this movie lives up to its namesake to a T. The way the movie plays out, it's like a huge magic trick, with the audience waiting to see how it unfolds, getting the suspicion on how it's done, but yet sitting through it thorough engaged to discover how everything will be revealed and resolved. It tells the story of how two magicians, fellow apprentices turned unfortunate rivals, plod down the slow path of jealous obsession, revenge, and the deliberate attempts to go at lengths to steal each other's ideas, to go one up against the other, a fight in romance, life and the long held passionate drive to discredit each other. There are perfect explanations of the value of secrets, and how secrets can sometimes be used as tools for deceit. What I thought was valuable in the movie was the reinforcement of the notion of how "magic" actually worked. Besides the better understanding of the common body of scientific knowledge, things like having pretty assistants to distract, and having planted staff amongst the audience, somehow made me a sceptic to tricks and illusions, and try harder to spot at which stage had things undergone a sleight of hand. More importantly, it introduced me to the notion and importance of a loyal engineer behind the scenes who designs elaborate contraptions solely for the magician's use, and how having disloyal staff can indeed be detrimental to any leaks of secrets. And Michael Caine took on this engineering role as Cutter, responsible for assisting Rupert Angier (Hugh Jackman) with loyalty and conviction that they could, as a team, beat Christian Bale's Alfred Borden. I thought the cast in general were superb, with Christian Bale leading the charge. Hugh Jackman too showed that he could play a dark character, as the two leads tackled their characters' theme of sacrifice, arrogance, and ultimately redemption, especially for Rupert Angier. I thought he did what he did towards the end was a kind of penance to what happened in the beginning, hoping to kill two birds with a single stone, to exact the sweetest revenge he could possibly muster. What also was intriguing about the two lead characters was that there is no right or wrong, no hero or villain. It's always a shade of grey in what they do, and for Alfred Borden, I felt it's more for survival and the provision for family, which is a strong subplot running through the film. I just have to mention though, that Scarlett Johansson being Esquire's Sexiest Woman Alive, gets to play a flower vase role here as a magician's assistant, though her role as the pawn between the rivals added a little gravitas. The atmosphere was set up great, and so were the costumes and sets. The soundtrack was hauntingly mesmerizing, capturing the look and mood appropriately. Look out too for David Bowie's appearance as a Serbian scientist! I was floored by the deftness of how Nolan weaved and juxtaposed the non linear narrative so flawlessly. While the usual techniques is to use placeholders, or flashback sequences, colours etc, here, time is so fluid, but yet the audience will know precisely which era they're in, without being explicitly told, or working too much of the noodle. You just know, and it's just that feeling of being totally transparent with time. Even though the movie clocked in at slightly more than 2 hours, you don't feel its length at all. At the end of the movie, one quote popped into mind: Misdirection - what the eyes see and the ears hear, the mind believes. Quite apt to describe how things work out during the movie, or to describe in general, Nolan 's films so far. That added richness to lift the movie to a superior plane. Do yourself a favour, if there's one movie you absolutely must watch this week, then Prestige must be your natural choice. It's smart in delivery and slick in presentation. There is none other. P.S. Is it just me, or are notebooks a common feature in Nolan's movies?

I've seen this film twice now - about a year ago and then yesterday - and thoroughly enjoyed it both times, even the second time when I remembered some of those fantastic twists in the last half hour. Sometimes it's even more fun to view a film like this when you know a few things, because earlier scenes take on new meaning.

It's not an easy film to totally digest, even with two viewings, because that ending has some mind-boggling revelations. Without having to resort to spoilers, let me just say the story is extremely interesting, the acting very good, the period pieces fun to view and it's a pretty clean movie so grandma can also enjoy it, too, without language or sex concerns.

Basically, it's a story about obsession between two magicians in the last decade of the 19th century. They continually try to top one another and things get nasty along the way. Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale are both fun to watch in those roles, as are Michael Caine and Scarlett Johansson in supporting roles.

This is one movie guaranteed to have you thinking about it when it's over!

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+".

I went to see a critics preview of The Prestige this afternoon and to my surprise I found the film to be one of the best I have seen all year so far, and that writers can come up with an excellent script it they would only try a little harder. The acting performances by Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale and Michael Caine were the best I have see in a long while. The only objection I had to the film was that it was a little long, but once you leave the theater you will discuss the film and it many twists and turns. My wife and myself discussed it all the way home from the movie theater. This is a winner and should be up for some academy award statues, and my recommendation is go see this as soon as you can, you will not be disappointed.

The Prestige is a masterful exercise in storytelling with superb direction and powerful performances by a grand ensemble cast. From set and production design to cinematography, from script to presentation, Christopher Nolan has once again demonstrated why he is one of the film world's brightest up and coming directors. The Prestige only helps solidify his standing as one of the landmark directors of his generation.

Told in a narrative that jumps between various points along its time line, playing out like a magic act itself, the story is that of two magicians on the rise in their careers. The first -- played by Christian Bale -- is an expert in understanding the fundamentals of any trick, but lacks showmanship. The second -- played by Hugh Jackman -- is a master showman who is more entertaining than technical. A tragic series of events pits the two performers against each other in a battle of wits that spirals further and further out of control, consuming both of them and everything and everyone they care about.

With a story that requires actors with a great deal of emotive range, Nolan has assembled what could be described as a dream cast. Both Bale and Jackman suit their respective roles perfectly, and pitting these two performers against each other was a stroke of casting genius. Michael Caine takes what could have been a forgettable role by any lesser actor and elevates it with his demanding screen presence. Probably the most surprising performance comes from David Bowie whose unforgettable turn as master physicist Nikola Tesla absolutely shines. Add Andy Serkis to the mix, and what is assembled is a group of performers who know how to fully engage the audience.

The Prestige is hard to pigeonhole into any specific genre as it walks the fine line between mystery, drama, suspense and fantasy. In that, the story becomes a never-ending stream of wonder for the mind: one can never tell exactly where the story is going to lead next, becoming more and more as time goes on. This gives Christopher Nolan ample opportunity to play. And play he does. With narration by several characters, each adding their own viewpoint to the events, and with a direction that moves between time to mystify and distract, the end result is a climax that itself is a series of puzzles that each unravel beautifully.

The only major criticisms that can be leveled at the Prestige are a confusing play with the seasons during Tesla's introduction (winter suddenly becomes spring/summer and back again) and a strange choice of music for the closing credits (a pop song at the end of a film such as this seems tacky). However, neither is significant enough of a problem to warrant any need to avoid the film at all.

In the end, the Prestige is a fantastic display of what can be accomplished when you bring together superior talent. It is certainly worth the price of admission and as good as any magic show you are to come across.