Truly magical

The Prestige
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine
Directed by: Christopher Nolan

I'm a little late reviewing this movie. But when you've got a stellar cast, then it's not much of a problem eh? With two Oscar nominations in 2007, this has to be amongst the best movies of the decade. And that, is not only due to the fantastic cast. It's the entire concept, which is refreshing. It's different from all the other movies that Hollywood seems to be making these days.

Now for explanations – Christopher Nolan has proved to everyone how he is a spectacular director. After the magnificent Memento (another movie which must be watched!), he continued a great career with the great Insomnia and the thrilling Batman Begins. Now, he defines his career with The Prestige, a mysterious dramatic thriller, that proves to be his best movie since Memento.

The story revolves around two magicians who are just starting out, Rupert Angier and Alfred Borden (Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale, respectively) What begins as friendship eventually turns into rivalry after Rupert's wife is killed in a magic trick that goes wrong.

From then on, the two start trying to discover each other's secrets, and ruin their tricks. It all changes when Alfred discovers the ultimate trick: The Transported Man, a trick that will make Rupert lose his mind in order to decipher it.

The Prestige is not a movie for everyone. It has a great amount of twists and turns, and has the ability to leave people shocked and confused. It is a love it or hate it type of film – and that's exactly what I'm afraid of.

This movie is one of the best movies of the year (behind The Fountain and The Departed), and marks a new beginning to the career of those involved in it. Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman give powerful performances. I can’t imagine any other actor who could portray these characters. Scarlett Johansson (she's getting better and better by the day!) provides another good performance, and Andy Serkis is a vital part to the movie.

The film also features the solid performance of David Bowie, playing an expert in electricity and Michael Caine’s performance is also worthy of praise. The movie, technically, is brilliant.

The period of time portrayed (the Victorian Era, curiously also shown in another magic movie this year, The Illusionist) is taken to perfection. The costumes are great, effects are truly believable, and the photography is stunning. The script is groundbreaking, offering great solutions and stunning twists.

If you ask me, it was brilliant. This is a dark movie, one that may give you the creeps. And I love it when a movie can give me this feeling.

The pace of the movie is non-linear, and that gets in the way a bit. Though it wasn't nominated for Best Picture that year, I feel that it should have been and would have actually been some competition for The Departed!

A movie with the power of becoming a cult classic, The Prestige is truly magical. In every single sense of the word. Abracadabra!

He said / She said: Now you're looking for the secret... but you won't find it because you're not really looking. You don't really want to know the secret... You want to be fooled.

Watch it if you liked: The Illusionist
Movie Hall of Fame: No
Tagline: A friendship that became a rivalry. A rivalry that turned deadly.