'The Prestige' is set in London in the early 20th century and revolves around the power play of two magicians. The movie lives from the fight between the main characters played by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale. However, it is not a natural rivalry in which they spur each other on to top performance. Nor is it primarily about being seen as a better magician by society. The focus is on the simple fact of wanting to be better than the other. And everything else in the lives of the two must submit to this situation.
It's really nice to see how this game keeps coming to a head and the limits of what is acceptable are pushed further and further. You never really know at what point who has the upper hand and in which direction the whole thing will go. The movie has a lot of smaller and bigger twists that are anything but predictable and lose impact even after watching it several times.
The character played by Michael Cane explains how a magic trick is constructed. It consists of three acts. In the first act, the magician shows something supposedly ordinary. In the second act, the magician manages to make the ordinary do something extraordinary. In the third act there is a twist and the spectator sees something shocking.
In the end, a trick is only interesting if you don't know how it works. This is exactly the point that makes you think and doesn't let you go.
This setup of a magic trick was incredibly well shifted to the level between the two main characters. Every segment of the two's fight works on this principle. The two shock each other over and over again with something that can't be expected or explained.
For me, 'The Prestige' works really well. I've seen the movie several times and it hasn't lost any of its impact for me. On the contrary, when you know where the story is going, you pay attention to other details.
It's really nice to see how this game keeps coming to a head and the limits of what is acceptable are pushed further and further. You never really know at what point who has the upper hand and in which direction the whole thing will go. The movie has a lot of smaller and bigger twists that are anything but predictable and lose impact even after watching it several times.
The character played by Michael Cane explains how a magic trick is constructed. It consists of three acts. In the first act, the magician shows something supposedly ordinary. In the second act, the magician manages to make the ordinary do something extraordinary. In the third act there is a twist and the spectator sees something shocking.
In the end, a trick is only interesting if you don't know how it works. This is exactly the point that makes you think and doesn't let you go.
This setup of a magic trick was incredibly well shifted to the level between the two main characters. Every segment of the two's fight works on this principle. The two shock each other over and over again with something that can't be expected or explained.
For me, 'The Prestige' works really well. I've seen the movie several times and it hasn't lost any of its impact for me. On the contrary, when you know where the story is going, you pay attention to other details.