'The Prestige' (Christopher Nolan, 2006)

Hugh Jackman realizes that static electricity isn't a toy after rubbing a balloon on the wall. Hugh, honestly, didn't your mom teach you anything?
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****

Strangely enough, Christopher Nolan’s “The Prestige” works much like the magical illusions it depicts so splendidly. On the surface, it’s an intricately woven, beautifully shot piece of period piece cinema. But this spectacle has a fair share of tricks up its sleeve, and absolutely nothing is what it appears to be.

Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale) are competing magicians in the mysteriously intriguing world of Victorian-era London. When Borden creates the ultimate magic trick – in which the magician disappears into one door only to reappear out of another almost instantly – Angier becomes obsessed with his rival’s secrets. What starts as a grudging contest soon escalates into a life-long and often violent rivalry between the two fixated men.

“The Prestige” is an impressive achievement in every respect. From the cast and performances (Michael Caine is excellent and David Bowie is just awesome in a small but memorable supporting role), to the dialogue and cinematography, “The Prestige” is just fantastic cinema.

It’s a film that could easily lean on cheap thrills and plot twists to carry the plot, but it refrains. Instead, the numerous reveals (which are simply incredibly, by the way) are like the icing on the cake – the sprinkles on the already delicious sundae that is “The Prestige.”

Christopher Nolan, who consistently releases quality cinema, has done it again. “The Prestige” is easily one of the best films of the year, a multi-layered story rich with first-rate performances and extensively breathtaking set-pieces.