The Illusion of Bitter Rivalry

Movie Review

Title:
The Prestige

Director:
Christopher Nolan

Cast :
Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, Andy Serkis, David Bowie

Screenplay:
Jonathan Nolan and Cristopher Nolan

Based on a novel by:
Chritopher Priest

I have been excited about this movie since I saw the trailer and saw the caption 'from the director of 'Batman Begins'!'. The casting was also promising: there was a lot of A-list actors and actresses in the casting list. I also did something that I regretted doing later on: I checked the reviews for this movie in www.imdb.com. The movie got good reviews, mind you. But the thing that I didn't like was that I would be going to the movies with high expectations and a fear that the movie might actually not meet my expectations. I should have gone to see the movie without any expectations. It would have made it more exciting.

After watching the movie, however, I found that my fear was unfounded. The movie was, for not having any better word to sum it up, really good. If you are familiar with Nolan's previous works (such as 'Memento', and 'Batman Begins'), you need not fear: you are in familiar territory here. Discontinued/unconventional story timeline? Check. Twisted story? Check. Twisted ending? Check. Excellent cinematography? Check. Excellent direction? Check. Excellent performances? Check. What else could you ask for out of a good movie, right?

The story of the movie could be summed up in these words (taken from the movie's trailer): "Every great magic trick consists of three acts. The first act is called "The Pledge"; The magician shows you something ordinary, but of course... it probably isn't. The second act is called "The Turn"; The magician makes his ordinary some thing do something extraordinary. Now if you're looking for the secret... you won't find it, that's why there's a third act called, "The Prestige"; this is the part with the twists and turns, where lives hang in the balance, and you see something shocking you've never seen before."

The directions of the story and the discontinued timeline are all arranged to serve you 'The Pledge', 'The Turn', and finally 'The Prestige'. Once again, if you have seen 'Memento', you'll understand what I'm talking about. And just like 'Memento', the movie and the story is quite detailed. This movie deserve subsequent viewing, especially for those who like details. However, to give you a general idea of the story, it is about the rivalry between two magicians, Rupert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale). Their rivalry takes a bitter turn after an incident, and it threatens to wreak havoc to both men's lives and the lives of their closest people. Finally, their rivalry will involve one trick called 'The Transported Man'. Each men will try to outdo one another to come up with the best version of 'The Transported Man', while trying to figure out each other's trick's secrets.

Performance-wise, the actors were fabulous. Hugh Jackman gave quite a convincing performance, from being a person with a positive outlook towards life to becoming a bitter man hell-bent on destroying his rival. Christian Bale also held his own, playing a person whose life was all about tricks, secrets, and performances. Michael Caine was excellent, as always, playing the mentor of both magicians. Scarlett Johansson gave quite a good performance too. There was nothing spectacular about her acting nor was it below standard either. Her role/character, however, was quite pivotal in the storyline. David Bowie and Andy Serkis deserve a mention here for their role in the storyline. David Bowie was surprisingly convincing as Nicolas Tesla. Strong acting overall, in my opinion.

The movie was quite sweeping and epic story-wise, and it took quite a twisted turn near the end of the movie (go see the movie and you'll know what I mean). However, that is to be expected. After all, this movie is all about 'The Prestige', isn't it? The part with the twists and turns, where lives hang in the balance, and you see something shocking you've never seen before. And so in the end, the actors and actresses are merely a magician's tools, and the director is the great magician.

One of the greatest movie of this year, in my opinion.

Finally, I would like to say one thing to you who are going to see this movie: "Are You Watching Closely?" (Alfred Borden)