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?

as i did.

can't wait to own this on DVD.

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.

preluding it is the pledge, followed by the turn. Together these three key components are slotted in unique positions in 'The Prestige's arrestingly clever script but it is the titular act that propels the film. The pledge introduces our main characters: magicians Alfred Borden Christian Bale and Robert Angier Hugh Jackman in turn-of-the-century London and we see how their friendship abruptly becomes a fully-fledged rivalry and hostility with a magic act gone horribly wrong in front of an audience. There is a death, and it lights the fuse of an onslaught of reel revelations and the one-upmanship that will ensue between the two competitors. 'The turn' comes to offers twists by the bucketload in the form of love-interests, and technologically marvelous magic acts. I gasped, I scratched my head, I watched on in awe. No description will do it justice.The prestige as the end note to the show – in which, for example, the disappearer reappears to the deafening applause of the crowd – is so meticulously composed in the film through foreshadowing and fractured chronology that rigorously intersects, intertwines, intercuts, fast-forwards, rewinds and replays key parts of the story that the whole spectacle floors you. Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan have worked out a template script that is more twisty and turny than a mountain road and for that reason I am very reluctant to spoil even the slightest detail of the story of 'The Prestige'– of all of its acts, in fact. If you are shaking your head thinking a clever twist ending does not make the movie and I agree , know that this is not a "gotcha"-kind of Shyamalan trick where you want to stop the film, rewind it and watch it meticulous foreshadowing up to the cheap pay-off, but a tightly-written ever-shifting hall of mirrors with so many intrinsic twists that on your way home you will still be scratching you head and searching for clues.Our two magicians are perfectly-cast with Hugh Jackman capturing the showy, slick, ambition-driven nature of his character Angier in contrast to Bale's technique-driven purist who may be well on his way to perfecting the craft, but lacks the 'Abracadabra' entertainment value. I had always crowned the latter the more capable actor of the two, but the fact is that Jackman performs just as well in the film. Having said that, Borden has more layers to his complex, contradictory keyword persona than the flashy, greedy Angier which perhaps begs more weight from the actor behind the role, shifting more demand on Christian Bale. The sad fact of it is that neither of these two men are likable characters and elicit nothing more than temporary sympathy. However, the secrecy with which the intricate story approaches them makes it impossible for the viewer to slot them in protagonist vs. antagonist positions, and indeed they are given almost the exact same screen-time and voice-over narration throughout, a subtle and brilliant accolade of Nolan's.To further evaluate the cast of The Prestige, David Bowie and Michael Caine undoubtedly merit a great deal of praise for supporting the two moody, unlikeable leading men. It is a crying shame then that Scarlett Johansson – always an incapable actress except for the rare occasions in which she plays a sultry American vixen Match Point – performs so badly in the role of Olivia Wenscombe, a magic assistant pending between Borden and Angier. Here she is actually given a very good and important character who is not necessarily bad like the rest, but botches her interpretation by giving an unspeakably hammy London accent. Nolan picks up on her shortcomings as an actress, and resorts to boob-shots en masse. This he should be fully entitled to do as a director, for a beautiful diversion will always camouflage the process and any of its potential missteps, as Michael Caine's character puts forward.With Scarlett as a pleasurable paint-job, twists by the bucket-load and flashy magic tricks as windowdressing to a solid mystery film, there is little or no need to delve deeper into the psyches of its characters to keep our attention. Yet this is done, and superbly so, by Christopher Nolan. 'Antihero' gets a whole new spin to it in The Prestige with two friends-turned-rivals so bitterly poised on the brink of obsession of outshining the other that succeeding with the ultimate 'prestige' of magic followed by applause is enough to drive them to murder, bankruptcy, deceit and sabotage. Borden simply wants to be better on a technical level, while Angier wants the public's recognition and wide-spread fame. Their ambition is in effect largely the same: create the definitive deceptive illusion and do it through any means necessary.'The Prestige' is a majestic film that nevertheless spans across too long a running time. Condensation would have done wonders and surely bumped it up a notch, as would underpinning some humour at one or two points it is VERY gloomy , but it truly is a great cinematic achievement and a shoe-in for my top 10 of 1006, and easily the most inventive film I have seen in years. I am eagerly anticipated director Christopher Nolan's next sleight-of-hand direction, and it looks like the closest is The Dark Knight 2008 .9 out of 10

with the common fold of the play we see and the performance s they make.— Multiple existence of beings— Different slices of time as the narrative is unrolled backwards and forwards in bits.— The way the stories are recounted in two overlapping diaries, each a lure. Pay particular attention to this, and the fairly literate references, starting with Van Helsing and covering at least a few Shakespearean phrases.Its therefore 5 times more clever, engaging and rewarding than "The Illusionist," itself a competent oneway fold.Spend some time with this. That Batman thing went over well with some folks, I know. But it was a waste of talent. This is where the man belongs. Welcome home Chris. Stay away from comics.The acting is irrelevant. Good thing.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.

magicians suave Rupert Angier a riveting performance by Hugh Jackman and audacious Alfred Borden Christian Bale effortlessly playing a brooding lower-class Brit each seek to wreak continuing revenge upon the other.The story, though adapted from a novel, feels like a perfect fit for director Nolan's sensibilities, as the machinations of the two men become increasingly convoluted during a back-and-forth tug of wits that keeps you guessing in the style of Nolan's "Memento." As the game grows increasingly deadly, and threatens to consume all they love, the film becomes a fascinating study in single-mindedness.The work is epic in sweep, beautifully filmed, and strongly acted. The only odd note in casting is David Bowie as Nikola Tesla he looks nothing like the actual Tesla, if you care about these sort of things, and his appearance calls attention to itself as superstar casting often does , but Mr. Bowie holds his own. Solid performances are all around, with Michael Caine adding dignity and depth as the old master, Scarlett Johanssen as the as the lovely stage assistant who becomes the third point in a twisted love triangle, and even Andy Serkis Gollum! in a memorable supporting role.The introduction of Tesla adds yet another twist, as the film shifts from real-but-possible stage illusion to steam-punkish sci-fi. This transition is a hard note to pull off, since the beginning of the film doesn't quite suggest such a direction, but if you're willing to let Nolan lead you on the journey into increasingly fantastic realms, the narrative rewards you with thought-provoking moral and dramatic exploration of the issues raised.A truly entertaining movie, and an original, unusual, dark ride -- well worth seeing in a theater for its grand scope and vision.

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.

are two up-and-comers who work together, and then instantly turn into rivals after a particularly devastating incident early in their careers. What follows is a tale of both men finding a means of one-upping each other at every turn, whether it be physically sabotaging the other person's act, using the sexy assistant Olivia Johansson to help get secret information, or gaining help from the even more secretive "wizard" Nikola Tesla David Bowie, in a rare film appearance .The thing about the film is that you have to pay attention at all times. It has moments where the film feels speedy, and others where it feels downright slow. But no matter what, something integral is always happening. Despite it being told in a particularly bizarre narrative structure the present flashbacking to the past flashbacking even further into the past, and then back again , the film follows the key three-part magic act sequence which any trailer fan should probably already know about . The film suffers here because it does not really stay consistent with the direction it wants to go in, and becomes a bit confusing and inane as a result. It may be a bit of a struggle to grasp the structure at first, but slowly becomes more easily accessible. At times it works strongly, but in others, it just feels like it wants to toy with the audience and do nothing else. We know every little detail matters, but should the material not be a little more solidified than it is? A bit of extra padding and focus here could have helped greatly.Being a period piece, you can see the great care and devotion taken to ensure that the film looks like it is occurring at the turn of the twentieth century. It may be dark, but there is just enough light to shine through and make everything all the more colourful. The costumes are all lavishly gorgeous, as are the backdrops and set pieces. It feels distinctive and authentic, but not to the point of being overkill. The score is just about perfect, and the editing really helps to act as the drive of the film. The great British accents are all highly in tune with the rest of the feeling of the film as well, even from the American actors.Jackman and Bale are excellent in their respective roles. Right from the start, you can tell these two are steering towards destruction, and as their characters slowly move into becoming downright evil, it becomes even more of a pleasure for the audience to watch. They play off each other well in their scenes together, and their presences are downright smoldering. These young actors really show off their chops, and show off the deeper range that only a few select modern actors can even pray to be able to show. While I really enjoy Jackman as an actor, I cannot help but realize this is one of his deepest roles yet. He's very striking in the role, but at times you can see that this is one of his first real attempts at doing so. Bale on the other hand, can add this right next to his already brooding library of ranged works his most astonishing being his turn in American Psycho , and looks like he is right at home with the material. I know they probably will not get recognition during the awards season, but I can only hope this is a taste of things to come from both of them.Caine is great as the wise manager character that he has perfected over the years, and Bowie's small performance is practically intoxicating. He does not play the character up too much, but he plays it with just the right amount of intensity demanded. He is complemented by Andy Serkis, who thankfully plays a real-life character and not one made totally out of CGI. It was something different to actually see him literally acting, and I was pleasantly surprised to see it be just as good, if not better, than his CGI-work. Although they only have so much they can do, the three main female characters, Johansson, Piper Perabo, and newcomer Rebecca Hall all perform excellently, and work well off their co-stars. I would have liked to have seen a bit more material being used by these three, but they really stand up well against their much more heavily used male co-stars.Inevitably, the comparison to this year's "other magician" film, Neil Burger's The Illusionist, must come up, and thankfully, it works at about the same level. They both have strong acting although the female acting is far superior here , a good storyline, and beautiful sets. If anything, The Prestige feels like it wants to accomplish more than it can handle. Thankfully, it does not become too overbearing, but some of the confusion the film generates really does detract from it.Although not as good as Memento or Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan has added another strong film to his short resume, and continues to prove his worth in Hollywood. I can only hope that the audience does not get too overly distracted by the film's structure problems, and can truly appreciate this all-around great film.8/10.