The Prestige
"It is mine to avenge, I will repay." (Deuteronomy 32:35) Just about everyone knows that the Bible says vengeance is the Lord's, but have you ever wondered why? The Prestige provides us with an answer. This dark tale of lies, deceit and vengeance shows just how destructive these tendencies truly are. Despite it's less than uplifting story, however, The Prestige is one of the most tightly written, well preformed and intriguingly tricky films I've seen this year. I may not have gone home with any sort of feel good feeling, but my mind was still examining the twists and turns as I tried to figure out any clue I might have missed long after I left the theatre, which for me at least, makes for one fun time at the movies.
The key to making The Prestige so intriguing is the reveal at the end (which, by the way, I will not reveal to you.) I say reveal for a very specific reason. It's not so much of a gotcha kind of twist ala Shamalyan, but it's really a revelation of what had been taking place all along right in front of your eyes. It's kind of like when you find out how a magician has been pulling of a particular trick. You say, "Ohhhhh, that's how it was done" and then you want to see the trick again in order to watch for what you now know is really taking place; you want to see if you can spot the sleight of hand. So don’t let anyone spoil the secret for you before you see this film.
Aside from Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan is known for well-crafted stories that seem to be made up of many disparate pieces that actually all fit together perfectly. The Prestige is another such story. As the story unfolds, its many layers and parts may seem completely unrelated, but by the end, you look back and realize it all fit together perfectly, you just had to know where to look while Nolan pulled his cinematic sleight of hand. Part of makes all of this trickery and deceit work so well is the performances of the cast. Christian Bale puts in another solid performance, and the always reliable Michael Caine brings some refinement and class to this dark story. The true stand-out, however, is Hugh Jackman. Any trace of his Wolverine persona is completely gone, and in its place is a man who goes on a journey that changes him in subtle, dark and complex ways. I've never been a Hugh Jackman fan as I've never really felt that he’s been able to establish himself beyond the character of Wolverine, but after seeing him in this role, that perception was completely erased. Jackman is an extremely talented actor who uses his skills with perfection in a movie that needed nothing less to make it work.
Although the intrigue and twists of this film are a lot of fun, I have to warn you, you aren't going feel good when you leave the theatre. As I said earlier, this is a dark film. There aren't really any heroes in this film, or any characters that you can really feel any real sympathy for. The characters continually make choices that take them further and further down a path of destruction. The true tragedy is that no matter what horrifying event happens to these characters, no matter how much destruction surrounds these people, they never learn. They never come to a point where they step back and look at what they’re doing in order to assess if this is a journey they want to continue; until it's too late. As I watched, I couldn't help but hope that the audience I was watching with would take notice of what was happening and apply it their own lives. How many of us find vengeance to be sweet? However, if we go too far, and we might end up like the characters in The Prestige; or worse, if that were possible. How many of us have been obsessed, especially with something that someone else had that we felt we deserved. In fact, how many of have destructive tendencies that constantly linger beneath the surface just waiting for release? The Prestige shows us what happens whenever we pursue these paths; they lead to destruction, not only in our own lives but also in the innocent lives of people around. The characters in The Prestige never stop to consider this, and that's what makes this film so dark. It is a dramatic, visual parable of the Proverb “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.� (Proverbs 14:12 NIV) That’s exactly what the characters in The Prestige experience, and if we're not careful, we could also fall into the same trap.
The Prestige is moody, dark, complex and intriguing. This is a film that you will need to pay attention to if you really want to enjoy it, and more importantly, learn from it. After I left, I realized that I would need to go back and watch it again to make sure I caught everything and that I knew exactly how all the pieces fit. After a summer of mindless blockbuster popcorn films, I'm glad that the fall is bringing back films that not only entertain audiences, but engages them as well. So is The Prestige a good film? Absolutely. Is it a film that will make you feel good? Absolutely not. It's up to you, then, to decide if the journey, the revelation and most importantly the lesson will be worth it.
The key to making The Prestige so intriguing is the reveal at the end (which, by the way, I will not reveal to you.) I say reveal for a very specific reason. It's not so much of a gotcha kind of twist ala Shamalyan, but it's really a revelation of what had been taking place all along right in front of your eyes. It's kind of like when you find out how a magician has been pulling of a particular trick. You say, "Ohhhhh, that's how it was done" and then you want to see the trick again in order to watch for what you now know is really taking place; you want to see if you can spot the sleight of hand. So don’t let anyone spoil the secret for you before you see this film.
Aside from Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan is known for well-crafted stories that seem to be made up of many disparate pieces that actually all fit together perfectly. The Prestige is another such story. As the story unfolds, its many layers and parts may seem completely unrelated, but by the end, you look back and realize it all fit together perfectly, you just had to know where to look while Nolan pulled his cinematic sleight of hand. Part of makes all of this trickery and deceit work so well is the performances of the cast. Christian Bale puts in another solid performance, and the always reliable Michael Caine brings some refinement and class to this dark story. The true stand-out, however, is Hugh Jackman. Any trace of his Wolverine persona is completely gone, and in its place is a man who goes on a journey that changes him in subtle, dark and complex ways. I've never been a Hugh Jackman fan as I've never really felt that he’s been able to establish himself beyond the character of Wolverine, but after seeing him in this role, that perception was completely erased. Jackman is an extremely talented actor who uses his skills with perfection in a movie that needed nothing less to make it work.
Although the intrigue and twists of this film are a lot of fun, I have to warn you, you aren't going feel good when you leave the theatre. As I said earlier, this is a dark film. There aren't really any heroes in this film, or any characters that you can really feel any real sympathy for. The characters continually make choices that take them further and further down a path of destruction. The true tragedy is that no matter what horrifying event happens to these characters, no matter how much destruction surrounds these people, they never learn. They never come to a point where they step back and look at what they’re doing in order to assess if this is a journey they want to continue; until it's too late. As I watched, I couldn't help but hope that the audience I was watching with would take notice of what was happening and apply it their own lives. How many of us find vengeance to be sweet? However, if we go too far, and we might end up like the characters in The Prestige; or worse, if that were possible. How many of us have been obsessed, especially with something that someone else had that we felt we deserved. In fact, how many of have destructive tendencies that constantly linger beneath the surface just waiting for release? The Prestige shows us what happens whenever we pursue these paths; they lead to destruction, not only in our own lives but also in the innocent lives of people around. The characters in The Prestige never stop to consider this, and that's what makes this film so dark. It is a dramatic, visual parable of the Proverb “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.� (Proverbs 14:12 NIV) That’s exactly what the characters in The Prestige experience, and if we're not careful, we could also fall into the same trap.
The Prestige is moody, dark, complex and intriguing. This is a film that you will need to pay attention to if you really want to enjoy it, and more importantly, learn from it. After I left, I realized that I would need to go back and watch it again to make sure I caught everything and that I knew exactly how all the pieces fit. After a summer of mindless blockbuster popcorn films, I'm glad that the fall is bringing back films that not only entertain audiences, but engages them as well. So is The Prestige a good film? Absolutely. Is it a film that will make you feel good? Absolutely not. It's up to you, then, to decide if the journey, the revelation and most importantly the lesson will be worth it.
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