The Prestige is a dark dark period drama set in Victorian England focusing on the lives of two magicians (The Great Danton and The Professor) and is a magnificent representation of the nineteenth century fascination for melodrama and music hall Magic was a popular act and required a lot of skill to execute successfully. As the film tells us:

And it is in this vein that director Christopher Nolan sets out his film released in the UK in November 2006. "So, just how closely have you been watching?"

And so for the first act, Christopher Nolan takes the novel, The Prestige written by British author Christopher Priest in 1995. Alongside his brother Jonathon, Nolan adapted award winning novel into a screenplay for a film of the same title.

Robert Angier and Alfred Borden start their careers by working for Milton the Magician. They are friends used as plants in the audience for a trick that goes disastrously wrong. Angier's wife (Milton's assistant) becomes trapped and dies in a Chinese Water Cell. Angier blames Borden for tying the wrong knot. The two men become bitter enemies and separate to form their own acts: Angier as The Great Danton and Borden as The Professor.

For the second act, Nolan assembles an impressive cast. Australian-born Hugh Jack man is cast as Robert Angier and Welsh-born Christian Bale as Albert Borden. Both are no stranger to the extra-ordinary, dark side of films starring in X-Men/ Van Helsing and Batman Begins. Both are brooding, obsessive and menacing in their roles and create plausible characters. Considering neither is English, both manage to portray their characters effortlessly - Jackman is the perfect slick sophisticated English gentleman / showman contrasting to Bale's street-wise hardened cockney

David Bowie delivers his usual quirky performance as Nicholas Tesla. His distinctive screen presence extenuated by the dramatic special effects that accompany his scenes. The film includes a sub-plot to reflect the real-life nineteenth century feud between scientists Thomas Edison and Nicolas Tesla over the newly discovered abilities of electricity

Nolan's screenplay is very complex and detailed. The story is told by numerous flash-backs / flash-forwards to gradually reveal the full extent of the rivalry and relationship between the two magicians. By this method we gradually become aware of the hurts, fears, dreams and ambitions of the two drawing the audience closer into the characters lives.

Wally Pfister as cinematographer often uses a hand-held camera technique to create at intimate atmospheric feel to the film. The techniques works well particularly with the magic tricks!

~The Prestige~

Nolan foreshadows the final twist throughout the film laying down subtle hints (of which of course I cannot say for fear of spoiling the film). Many of the hints you will miss the first time through making this a film you can watch time and time again. Remember what Cutter says at the beginning "Watch closely!"

The Prestige is ultimately about misdirection. "What the eye sees . . . the mind believes". And just as the magicians misdirect to achieve their effects (the prestige - the revelation), Nolan's interweaving plots and storylines together with a jumping timeline misdirect the viewer to keep the prestige till the final moment.

I think that I have made it clear through the review how much I enjoyed The Prestige. It is a cleverly enacted film filled with constant twists and turns. The magnificent sets, costumes and special effects give an insight into magic and Victorian music hall. The historical factor of the film is interesting particularly the Edison and Tesla sub plot.