The Prestige

B-

Directed by Christopher Nolan

I'll admit that when "The Prestige" came out a few years back I constantly mixed it up with the "Illusionist" and thought the two films were one and the same or contained various actors from the other film. As such, I was shocked to find out that "The Prestige" did not star Edward Norton but in fact Christian Bale who, of course, I had previously believed was the star of "The Illusionist." Since watching and reviewing films is only a hobby of mine I feel that this type of amateurishness can be excused.
In any case, when I found out that "The Prestige" not only starred Christian Bale but was also directed by Chris Nolan I was excited to give it a look, having fairly unwavering faith in Nolan's ability to deliver a film that if not completely jaw dropping would at least be entertaining. Although "The Prestige" did, in its own way, turn out to be rather entertaining it was also crippled by a script so ridiculously implausible that it required a such a complete suspension of belief that is essentially prevented any actual engagement on my part.

"The Prestige" stars Bale as Alfred Borden and Hugh Jackman as Robert Angier, both turn of the century magicians plying their trade in dirty, lawless London. The two magicians originally work together as members of a the same magic troupe before the death of Angier's wife, also a member of the act, forces a rift between the two as Angier blames Borden for her death. The relationship sours further as both magicians begin their solo careers, attempting to both one up each other and sabotage the other's act, leading to an obsessive, arms race like escalation of sabotage and treachery eventually leading to Borden's murder of Angier, shown at the very beginning of the film. This death, however, as well as Borden's responsibility for the murder, is unsurprisingly not what it first appears to be, leading to a denouement full of double crossing, intrigue, and bombshell revelations.

"The Prestige" is based on Christopher Priest's 1995 novel of the same name and, like Priest's novel, is epistolary in nature, based on the two magician's diaries and jumping back and forth through time, like many of Nolan's previous films. The narrative structure is not necessarily at fault here, nor is the acting, cinematography, or editing of the film, all of which are superb. The problem with "Prestige" is simply that, like its main characters, it tries so hard to dazzle its audience that it eventually appears to bend and break under the weight of its bloated, unbelievable narrative. I have no problem with suspending belief in order to enjoy a film and in most cases such suspension of credibility is necessary for films to succeed. In the case of the "Prestige," however, Nolan and company really do go to far, concocting a story with so many truly unbelievable twists and turns that the end result is a sometimes entertaining but mostly ridiculous story that simply defies belief. Nolan is, of course, a supremely talented director who has directed highly successful and very well made films on a variety of budgets, but his talent here is unfortunately wasted. I suppose it could be argued, however, that without Nolan's direction and without the strong efforts of Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman as the rival magicians "The Prestige" could have been far worse. As it stands, however, "The Prestige" resorts to gimmicks of truly odious proportions to entertain it's viewers which was is not only unnecessary considering the pedigree and talent of the the film's cast and crew but is also rather disappointing since Nolan is a director I expect a bit more restraint out of when it comes to storytelling.