The Prestige (film): Difference between revisions

* [[Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures|Buena Vista Pictures Distribution]]<!-- Credited as "Buena Vista Pictures Distribution" --><br>(United States and Canada)

'''''The Prestige''''' is a 2006 <!--STOP! do not add genres. Per [[WP:FILMLEAD]], only the main genre identified by sources should be used.--> [[psychological thriller film]] directed by [[Christopher Nolan]], writtenwho byco-wrote Nolanthe andfilm his brotherwith [[Jonathan Nolan|Jonathan]] and is based on the [[The Prestige|1995 novel]] by [[Christopher Priest (novelist)|Christopher Priest]]. It stars [[Hugh Jackman]] as Robert Angier and [[Christian Bale]] as Alfred Borden, rival stage magicians in [[Victorian London]] who feud over a perfect [[teleportation]] trickillusion.

In 1890s London, Robert Angier and Alfred Borden work as [[shill]]splants (clandestine assistants posing as members of the audience) for a magician, under the mentorship of John Cutter, an engineer who designs stage magic. During a [[Chinese Water Torture Cell|water tank trick]], Angier's wife Julia fails to escape and drowns when Borden ties a different knot. Angier, devastated, accuses Borden of using a riskier knot, causing her death. The two become bitter enemies and part ways. Borden begins a solo act while Cutter helps Angier launch his own career. In retaliation for his wife's death, Angier sabotages Borden's [[bullet catch]] trick and shoots off two of the latter's fingers. Borden, in turn, sabotages Angier's performance and later develops a trick he calls "The Transported Man"," in which he appears to travel instantly between two wardrobes on opposite ends of the stage.

Unable to discern Borden's method, Angier hires a double, Gerald Root, to perform his own version of the trick. The imitation is a greater success, but Angier is dissatisfied, as he ends the trick hidden under the stage while Root basks in the applause. Borden then approaches Root and explains that he has high leveraging power over Angier, causing him to act more and more arrogant. In return, Angier has his assistant Olivia spy on Borden to learn how he performs The Transported Man. However, Olivia falls in love with Borden and becomes his assistant. With her help, Borden sabotages Angier's act, crippling him in the process. Confronted by AngierOlivia, OliviaBorden gives him a copy of Borden's encoded diary. Angier acquires the keyword to decode it, "TESLA"," by threatening to kill Borden's stage engineer, Fallon. The diary takes Angier to America to meet scientist [[Nikola Tesla]], who supposedly built a machine for The Transported Man trick.

Angier realizes the diary is fraudulent, created as a distraction, but Tesla still manages to create a machine for him. However, instead of teleporting objects, Tesla's machine creates a duplicate of them a short distance away. Tesla is driven from Colorado Springs by agents of his rival, [[Thomas Alva Edison]], but has the machine delivered to Angier. He advises Angier to destroy it, saying it will bring him nothing but misery. Borden's wife, Sarah, is driven to suicide by his contradictory personality. Borden reveals to Olivia that he never loved Sarah and that he loves her more. Disgusted by Borden's seeming inhumanity over his wife's death and the two magicians' feud, Olivia leaves. In London, Angier debuts "The Real Transported Man" using Tesla's machine, appearing to teleport across the theater.

Borden sneaks backstage and witnesses Angier fall through a trapdoor and drown in a water tank. Borden is discovered by Cutter and turned over to the police. He is later found guilty of murder and sentenced to death. Lord Caldlow, an aristocrat interested in magic, offers to adopt Borden's soon-to-be -orphaned daughter, Jess, so she is not sent to the [[workhouse]]s, in exchange for Borden's tricks. However, on meeting Caldlow, Borden realizes that it is Angier in disguise, comeand comes to gloat. When Cutter realizes that Angier is still alive, he is disgusted that Angier allowed Borden to be sentenced but agrees to help dispose of Tesla's machine. Borden is hanged for Angier's murder. Back at the theatre, Angier is shot by a stranger who reveals himself as Borden.

How each man performed the Transported Manteleportation act is revealed: "Alfred Borden" was an identity shared by a pair of identical twins; offstage when one was "Borden"," the other was disguised as "Fallon". When Angier had shot off one twin's fingers, the other amputated his own fingers to maintain the disguise. The surviving twin loved Sarah while his brother had loved Olivia.

Meanwhile, when Angier used Tesla's machine, every performance created a new Angier, while the original drowned in a tank beneath the stage. Angier dies from his gunshot and drops his lantern, setting the theatre on fire. Borden leaves and picks up Jess at Cutter's workshop. In the burning theater, rows of tanks hold dead Angiers.<!--STOP! Per [[WP:FILMPLOT]], plot summaries should be under 700 words. Please don't expand this plot summary.-->

* [[Michael Caine]] as John Cutter, the stage engineer (''ingenieur'') who works with Angier and Borden. Caine had previously collaborated with Nolan and Bale in ''Batman Begins''. Nolan noted that the part had been written "before I'd ever met" Caine.<ref name="Casting" /> Caine described Cutter as "a teacher, a father, and a guide to Angier". In trying to create the character's nuanced portrait, Caine altered his voice and posture.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.moviesonline.ca/movienews_10222.html |title=Interview: Michael Caine, 'The Prestige' |access-date=June 29, 2008 |author=Roberts, Sheila |work=MoviesOnline.ca |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120223060729/http://www.moviesonline.ca/movienews_10222.html |archive-date=February 23, 2012}}</ref>

[[Julian Jarrold]]'s and [[Sam Mendes]]'s producer approached [[Christopher Priest (novelist)|Christopher Priest]] for an adaptation of his novel ''[[The Prestige]]''. Priest was impressed with Christopher Nolan's films ''[[Following]]'' and ''[[Memento (film)|Memento]]'',<ref name="Marker">{{cite news |last=Toy |first=Sam |title=Magic marker |pages=137 |work=Empire |date=September 29, 2006}}</ref> and subsequently, producer Valerie Dean brought the book to Nolan's attention.<ref name="Shewman" /> In October 2000, Nolan traveled to the United Kingdom to publicize ''Memento'', as [[Newmarket Films]] was having difficulty finding a United States distributor. While in [[London]], Nolan read Priest's book and shared the story with his brother while walking around in [[Highgate]] (a location later featured in the scene where Angier ransoms Borden's stage engineer in [[Highgate Cemetery]]). The development process for ''The Prestige'' began as a reversal of their earlier collaboration: Jonathan Nolan had pitched his initial story for ''Memento'' to his brother during a [[road trip]].<ref name="Podcast">{{cite podcast

A year later, the [[Option (films)|option]] on the book became available and was purchased by [[Aaron Ryder]] of Newmarket Films.<ref name="Shewman" /><ref name="Podcast" /> In late 2001, Nolan became busy with the [[post-production]] of ''[[Insomnia (2002 film)|Insomnia]]'', and asked his brother [[Jonathan Nolan|Jonathan]] to help work on the script.<ref name="Podcast" /> The writing process was a long collaboration between the Nolan brothers, occurring intermittently over a period of five years.<ref>{{cite news |author=McGurk, Stuart |title=How I made... The Prestige: Christopher Nolan |work=TheLondonPaper.com |date=March 12, 2007 |url=http://www.thelondonpaper.com/staying-in/film-dvd-s/christopher-nolan |access-date=March 13, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090712055937/http://www.thelondonpaper.com/staying-in/film-dvd-s/christopher-nolan |archive-date=July 12, 2009}}</ref> In the script, the Nolans emphasized the magic of the story through the dramatic narrative, playing down the visual depiction of stage magic. The [[Three-act structure|three-act screenplay]] was deliberately structured around the three elements of the film's illusion: the pledge, the turn, and the prestige. "It took a long time to figure out how to achieve cinematic versions of the very [[literary device]]s that drive the intrigue of the story," Christopher Nolan told ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'': "The shifting points of view, the idea of journals within journals and [[Story within a story|stories within stories]]. Finding the cinematic equivalents of those literary devices was very complex."<ref>{{cite news |last=Cohen |first=David S. |title=Adapted Screenplay |work=Variety |date=December 18, 2006}}</ref> Although the film is thematically faithful to the novel, two major changes were made to the plot structure during the adaptation process: the novel's [[Spiritualism (beliefs)|spiritualism]] subplot was removed, and the modern-day [[frame story]] was replaced with Borden's wait for the gallows.<ref name="Shewman" /> Priest approved of the adaptation, describing it as "an extraordinary and brilliant script, a fascinating adaptation of my novel."<ref name="Shewman" />

In early 2003, Nolan planned to direct the film before the production of ''[[Batman Begins]]'' accelerated.<ref name="Eyes" /><ref>{{cite news |author=Fleming, Mike |title=Nolan wants 'Prestige' |work=Variety |date=April 16, 2003 |url=https://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=story&articleid=VR1117884751&categoryid=13&cs=1 |access-date=March 4, 2007 |archive-date=May 16, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120516165128/http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=story&articleid=VR1117884751&categoryid=13&cs=1 |url-status=live }}</ref> Following the release of ''Batman Begins'', Nolan started up the project again, negotiating with Jackman and Bale in October 2005.<ref name="MagicMen">{{cite news |author1=Fleming, Mike |author2=Cohen, David S. |title=Meet the men of magic |work=Variety |date=October 2, 2005 |url=https://www.variety.com/article/VR1117930078.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1&p=0 |access-date=March 5, 2007 |archive-date=July 13, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090713233417/http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117930078.html?categoryid=1236&cs=1&p=0 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Josh Hartnett]] pitched Nolan for a role.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/article/2024/jul/28/i-didnt-want-to-be-swallowed-up-actor-josh-hartnett-on-swapping-hollywood-for-hampshire | title='I didn't want to be swallowed up': Actor Josh Hartnett on swapping Hollywood for Hampshire | newspaper=The Observer }}</ref> While the screenplay was still being written, production designer Nathan Crowley began the set design process in Nolan's garage, employing a "visual script" consisting of [[scale model]]s, images, drawings, and notes. Jonathan and Christopher Nolan finished the final shooting draft on January 13, 2006, and began production three days later on January 16. Filming ended on April 9.<ref name="PrestigeDVD">{{cite video

The rivalry between Angier and Borden dominates the film. Obsession, secrecy, and sacrifice fuel the battle, as both magicians contribute their fair share to a deadly duel of one-upmanship, with disastrous results. Angier's obsession with beating Borden costs him Cutter's friendship, while providing him with a collection of his own dead clones; Borden's obsession with maintaining the secrecy of his twin leads Sarah to question their relationship, eventually resulting in her suicide when she suspects the truth. Angier and one of the twins both lose Olivia's love because of their inhumanity. Finally, Borden is hanged and the last copy of Angier shot. Their struggle is also expressed through [[class conflict|class warfare]]: Borden as ''The Professor'', a working-class magician who gets his hands dirty, versus Angier as ''The Great Danton'', a classy, elitist showman whose accent makes him appear American.<ref>{{cite web |last=Murray |first=Rebecca |title=Christian Bale Talks About "The Prestige" - Page 2 |work=[[About.com]] |url=http://movies.about.com/od/theprestige/a/prestigcb101606_2.htm |access-date=November 1, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070321134514/http://movies.about.com/od/theprestige/a/prestigcb101606_2.htm |archive-date=March 21, 2007}}</ref> Film critic Matt Brunson claimed that a complex theme of duality is exemplified by Angier and Borden, that the film chooses not to depict either magician as good or evil.<ref>{{cite web|last=Brunson|first=Matt|title=Trick and Treat|work=Creative Loafing Charlotte|url=http://clclt.com/charlotte/trick-and-treat/Content?oid=2145474|access-date=July 22, 2013|archive-date=January 19, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150119043824/http://clclt.com/charlotte/trick-and-treat/Content?oid=2145474|url-status=live}}</ref>

{{Blockquote|Angier's technological solution—which suggests art as a sacrifice, a phoenix-like death of the self—and Borden's more meat-and-potatoes form of stagecraft embodyembodies the divide between the artist and the social being.<ref name="FilmComment">{{cite journal |last=Rapold |first=Nicolas |date=Jan–Feb 2007 |title=Dueling-Magician Pick:The Prestige |journal=Film Comment |pages=77}}</ref>}}

Claudia Puig of ''[[USA Today]]'' described the film as "one of the most innovative, twisting, turning [[art film]]s of the past decade."<ref>{{cite news |last=Puig |first=Claudia |author-link=Claudia Puig |title='The Prestige': Magical, marvelous filmmaking |work=USA Today |date=October 20, 2006 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/reviews/2006-10-19-review-prestige_x.htm |access-date=March 4, 2007 |archive-date=June 30, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120630174454/http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/reviews/2006-10-19-review-prestige_x.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Drew McWeeny gave the film a glowing review, saying it demands repeat viewing,<ref>{{cite news |last=McWeeny |first=Drew |title=Moriarty conjures up AICN's first review of The Prestige! |work=Ain't It Cool News |date=October 13, 2006 |url=https://www.aintitcool.com/node/30390 |access-date=October 15, 2006 |archive-date=January 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110141132/http://legacy.aintitcool.com/node/30390 |url-status=live }}</ref> with [[Peter Travers]] of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' agreeing.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Travers |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Travers |title=The Prestige |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=October 20, 2006 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/the-prestige-20061020 |access-date=March 10, 2011 |archive-date=July 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120714114447/http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/the-prestige-20061020 |url-status=live }}</ref> On [[At the Movies (1986 TV program)|At the Movies with Ebert and Roeper]], [[Richard Roeper]] and guest critic [[A.O. Scott]] gave the film a "two thumbs up" rating.<ref>{{cite video |people=Richard Roeper and A.O. Scott |title=[[At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper|Ebert & Roeper]] |date=October 20, 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=A.O. Scott |title=Two Rival Magicians, and Each Wants the Other to Go Poof |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=October 20, 2006 |url=http://movies2.nytimes.com/2006/10/20/movies/20pres.html?ref=movies |access-date=February 16, 2007 |archive-date=July 23, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180723064434/http://movies2.nytimes.com/2006/10/20/movies/20pres.html?ref=movies |url-status=live }}</ref> Todd Gilchrist of [[IGN]] applauded the performances of Jackman and Bale whilst praising Nolan for making "this complex story as easily understandable and effective as he made the outwardly straightforward comic book adaptation (''[[Batman Begins]]'') dense and sophisticated... any truly great performance is almost as much showmanship as it is actual talent, and Nolan possesses both in spades."<ref>{{cite news |last=Gilchrist |first=Todd |title=Elevating movie magic to new artistic heights |work=IGN |date=October 15, 2006 |url=http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/740/740205p1.html |access-date=October 20, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119165359/http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/740/740205p1.html |archive-date=January 19, 2012}}</ref> ''[[CNN.com]]'' and ''[[Village Voice]]'' film critic Tom Charity listed it among his best films of 2006.<ref>{{cite news |last=Charity |first=Tom |title=The best (and worst) films of the year |work=CNN.com |date=December 28, 2006 |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/27/best.films/index.html |access-date=December 30, 2006 |archive-date=December 30, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061230151155/http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/27/best.films/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Philip French]] of ''[[The Observer]]'' recommended the film, comparing the rivalry between the two main characters to that of [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]] and [[Antonio Salieri|Salieri]] in the highly acclaimed ''[[Amadeus (film)|Amadeus]]''.<ref name="French">{{cite news

[[Roger Ebert]] gave the film three stars out of four, describing the revelation at the end as a "fundamental flaw" and a "cheat." He wrote, "The pledge of Nolan's ''The Prestige'' is that the film, having been metaphorically sawed in two, will be restored; it fails when it cheats, as, for example, if the whole woman produced on the stage were not the same one so unfortunately cut in two."<ref>{{cite newsweb |author=Ebert, Roger |title=AtmosphericallyThe lovely, 'Prestige' is, alas, a cheat; Christopher |work=Chicago Sun-Times |date=September 76, 2007 |url=httphttps://www.rogerebert.suntimes.com/appsreviews/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070906/REVIEWS/709060303/1023the-prestige-2007 |access-date=NovemberJuly 1518, 20072024 |archive-date=July 10, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090710094524/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20070906%2FREVIEWS%2F709060303%2F1023 |url-status=live }}</ref> R.J. Carter of ''The Trades'' felt, "I love a good science fiction story; just tell me in advance." He gave the film a B−.<ref>{{cite news |author=Carer, R.J. |title=The Prestige |work=The-Trades.com |date=February 20, 2007 |url=http://www.the-trades.com/article.php?id=5224 |access-date=November 15, 2007 |archive-date=May 22, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130522134424/http://www.the-trades.com/article.php?id=5224}}</ref> [[Christopher Priest (novelist)|Christopher Priest]], who wrote the novel the film is based on, saw it three times as of January 5, 2007, and his reaction was "'Well, holy shit.' I was thinking, 'God, I like that,' and 'Oh, I wish I'd thought of that.'"<ref>{{cite news |last=Dawn |first=Randee |title=Source material |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=January 5, 2007 |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/source-material-127292 |access-date=January 31, 2012 |archive-date=January 10, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110141133/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/source-material-127292 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[film score]] was written by English musician and composer [[David Julyan]]. Julyan had previously collaborated with director Christopher Nolan on ''[[Following]]'', ''[[Memento (film)|Memento]]'' and ''[[Insomnia (2002 film)|Insomnia]]''. Following the film's narrative, the soundtrack had three sections: the Pledge, the Turn, and the Prestige.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/The-Prestige/dp/B000IFRQI6 |title=''The Prestige'': David Julyan: Music |access-date=July 17, 2008 |author=Vincentelli, Elisabeth |work=Amazon.com |archive-date=April 15, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415080900/http://www.amazon.com/Prestige-Original-Score-David-Julyan/dp/B000IFRQI6 |url-status=live }}</ref>[[Hans Zimmer]] who collaborated with Nolan in ''[[Batman Begins]]'' served as the executive score producer for the film.

Some critics were disappointed with the score, acknowledging that while it worked within the context of the film, it was not enjoyable by itself.<ref name="PrestigeScoreRev" /><ref name="FilmtrackRev" /> Jonathan Jarry of ''[[Soundtrack.net|SoundtrackNet]]'' described the score as "merely functional," establishing the atmosphere of dread but never taking over. Although the reviewer was interested within the score's notion, Jarry found the execution was "extremely disappointing."<ref name="PrestigeScoreRev">{{cite web |url=http://www.soundtrack.net/albums/database/?id=4270&page=review |title='The Prestige' Soundtrack |access-date=July 26, 2008 |date=December 15, 2006 |author=Jarry, Jonathan |work=Soundtrack.net |archive-date=March 7, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307121747/http://www.soundtrack.net/albums/database/?id=4270&page=review |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Category:TeleportationFilms inabout filmsteleportation]]