As the days grow shorter and summer starts to wind down, it
seems appropriate for us to take a moment to pause and reflect on the event
which will no doubt define 2012 for years to come. The planning was meticulous,
the execution flawless, and no expense was spared in order to bring spectacle
and wonder to an enraptured global audience. All over the world, people came
together as one to celebrate and bear witness as herculean champions competed
against one another for our entertainment. I am talking, of course, about The Dark Knight Rises, the final film in
Christopher Nolan’s genre-rejuvenating Batman trilogy. Alongside such other critically
acclaimed fan favourites as Memento
(2000) and Inception (2010), The Dark Knight Rises further cemented
Nolan as one of the most talented filmmakers working today whilst fanning the
flames of my man-crush on Tom Hardy to dangerous heights. However, there is one
Nolan helmed film which seems to have never quite gotten the recognition it
deserves: his 2006 period piece, The
Prestige.
Based on the 1995 book of the same name by Christopher
Priest, The Prestige tells the tale
of an increasingly out-of-hand game of one-upmanship which develops between former
colleagues turned rival stage magicians Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred
Borden (Christian Bale), in turn of the twentieth century London. Borden is a capable and dedicated working-class
magician hampered by his poor sense of showmanship, whilst well-to-do Angier is
a natural and engaging performer who is perpetually frustrated that he cannot
match Borden’s raw talent. A tragic incident early in their careers sets the
two against one another, and when Borden debuts his new, jaw dropping and
seemingly unexplainable headline illusion, Angier becomes unhealthily obsessed
with uncovering his nemesis’ secret and stealing the trick.
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After the show they were jailed for public indecency |
Neither Angier nor Borden is exactly what could be described
as a "good guy"; they are single-minded, selfish men whose professional
successes come at the expense of everything and everyone else in their lives. Having
two dark, ruthless characters with few obvious redeeming features as the main focus
of the film could have led to a situation where the audience doesn’t have a
relatable character to root for, but thanks to superb casting The Prestige doesn’t suffer from this
problem. Bale and Jackman are each perfectly suited to their roles and channel
elements of their own personalities into their characters, giving them a very realistic
and relatable feel. It’s no insult to say that neither actor had to work very
hard to bring their character to life. Jackman’s theatre background and comfort on
the stage is put to great use as the show-pony, extrovert Angier, whilst Bale’s more
methodical acting style and erratic personality reflects perfectly in the serious
and explosive Borden. There is also an
excellent supporting cast backing the two leads up: Michael Caine brings real
warmth and class to proceedings as both the framing voiceover and Angier’s engineer, whilst Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall are, despite their limited screen
time, impactful in their portrayals of the unfortunate women in the magicians' lives.
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The Prestige is as close to this as we're ever likely to get |
The non-linear script, co-written by Nolan and his brother
Jonathan, is an exceptional piece of screenwriting. It is engrossing and entertaining
from start to finish, which is no mean feat considering the two hours and ten
minutes running time. The plot is woven expertly to mimic a magic trick as it
unfolds, teasing and suggesting certain possibilities before revealing
something altogether more unexpected and shocking as the curtain falls. It is
difficult to talk about the plot without giving away some pretty big spoilers
but suffice to say there are some real “holy shit” moments in this film, and the
ending is a crescendo of entertaining plot twists. One of these reveals in
particular is quite divisive, with some critics labelling it a “cheat” which undermines
the rest of the film. Without going into detail, all I will say about this is
that misdirection and deception are two of the most important elements in stage
magic, and as such, it should come as no surprise that they form recurring themes
in this film.
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Books - like films but more...papery |
The Prestige is
also an excellent example of how to successfully adapt a book for the big
screen. The source novel is a brilliant, inventive piece of work which I
thoroughly recommend you read, but if the Nolans had simply tried to recreate it
verbatim on film it would have been a disaster. The novel takes an epistolary
approach to the narrative, delivering it via a series of journal entries and
letters which are discovered by the modern day ancestors of Angier and Borden; it is a really effective way of framing and presenting the story in book form, but it would have been a nightmare to try and duplicate this method in the film
and also would have probably lead to a rather dry and static end product. Instead, the Nolans took the existing central characters and themes and re-worked them
drastically, putting their own recognisable stamp on the proceedings. The plot
is at times glaringly different to that of the book and yet it still manages to
maintain the atmosphere and intent of the original novel. The result is a film
which is somehow both faithful to and radically different from the novel, which
is an impressive trick to pull off, by anyone’s standards.
For further information visit The Prestige's IMDb page: www.imdb.com/title/tt0482571
Suggested further viewing: Memento (2000), The Fountain (2006), The Fighter (2010)