With Nolan, I was in since the year 2000 when Memento came out. I saw it based on the poster and loved it, and never have gone back since. I have a few directors who I have basically said, I'll see whatever they come out with. I'm in. It's at least okay, if not way way better than that.
The Prestige was a movie I didn't hear about when it came out, however. I'll admit that I missed this one, and saw it a few years after in reflection. I liked it, it was fine, and I never saw it after. But I recently rewatched Dunkirk, and now I have seen this again, and I might even rewatch Interstellar. The Batman movies are a maybe. A lot of these I haven't seen in like 10 years man, it's worth it!
The Prestige stars Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale in a tale of two magicians working together. Until that is, Christian Bale drunkenly ties up one of the stage women and she dies because he might have tied the wrong knot. That starts a feud between the two of them, and they keep trying to outdo each other as well as screw up each other's act. Woven into this is Michael Caine as a elder magician and role model, as well as Nikola Tesla as an inventor who can perhaps lend a trick for these men to use in their show.
Using Nolan's signature time jumps and cross cutting, we have a surprisingly character driven story with some genuine funny and dark moments. Both men are enigmatic and secretive, more similar than they'd like to admit, and using truly ingenious tactics they stay ahead of the game. We start with Christian Bale getting framed for the murder of Hugh Jackman and then we explore the layered history with them both, and it's truly interesting.
The Prestige seems to have vanished behind Nolan's other more popular, successful or more intellectual work. This movie is simply good in a time when we demand things be great. However, it is really good, and it is very entertaining. Everything works in this film, and there's not a missed opportunity here at all. I'll give it a 4.
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