science fantasy Science fantasy is a hybrid genre within speculative fiction that simultaneously draws upon or combines tropes and elements from both science fiction and fantasy. In a conventional science fiction story, the world is presented as being scientif ...

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

psychological thriller film Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting. In terms of context and ...

Christopher Nolan Christopher Edward Nolan (born 30 July 1970) is a British-American filmmaker. Known for his lucrative Cinema of the United States, Hollywood blockbusters with complex storytelling, Nolan is considered a leading filmmaker of the 21st century. ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

19th century The 19th (nineteenth) century began on 1 January 1801 ( MDCCCI), and ended on 31 December 1900 ( MCM). The 19th century was the ninth century of the 2nd millennium. The 19th century was characterized by vast social upheaval. Slavery was abolis ...

teleportation Teleportation is the hypothetical transfer of matter or energy from one point to another without traversing the physical space between them. It is a common subject in science fiction literature and in other popular culture. Teleportation is oft ...

trick Trick(s) may refer to: People * Trick McSorley (1852–1936), American professional baseball player * Armon Trick (born 1978), retired German international rugby union player * David Trick (born 1955), former Ontario civil servant and univers ...

Hugh Jackman Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian actor. Beginning in theatre and television, he landed his breakthrough role as James "Logan" Howlett / Wolverine in the 20th Century Fox ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2017), a role ...

Christian Bale Christian Charles Philip Bale (born 30 January 1974) is an English actor. Known for his versatility and physical transformations for his roles, he has been a leading man in films of several genres. He has received various accolades, including ...

Scarlett Johansson Scarlett Ingrid Johansson (; born November 22, 1984) is an American actress. The world's highest-paid actress in 2018 and 2019, she has featured multiple times on the ''Forbes'' Celebrity 100 list. ''Time'' magazine named her one of the 100 ...

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

Piper Perabo Piper Lisa Perabo () (born October 31, 1976) is an American actress. Following her breakthrough in the comedy-drama film '' Coyote Ugly'' (2000), she starred in ''The Prestige'' (2006), '' Angel Has Fallen'' (2019), and as CIA agent Annie Walk ...

Andy Serkis Andrew Clement Serkis (born 20 April 1964) is an English actor, director, and producer. He is best known for his performance capture roles comprising motion capture acting, animation, and voice work for computer-generated characters such as Goll ...

Rebecca Hall Rebecca Maria Hall (born 3 May 1982) is an English actress and filmmaker. She made her first onscreen appearance at age 10 in the 1992 television adaptation of ''The Camomile Lawn'', directed by her father, Sir Peter Hall. Her professional s ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla ( ; ,"Tesla"
''

Batman Begins ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...

'' and returning cinematographer

Wally Pfister Walter C. Pfister (born July 8, 1961) is an American director and former cinematographer, who is best known for his work with filmmaker Christopher Nolan. Some of his collaborations with Nolan include '' Memento'' (2000), ''The Dark Knight Tril ...

, production designer

Nathan Crowley Nathan Crowley (born 28 February 1966) is an English production designer and a former art director, who is best known for his collaborations with Christopher Nolan. He was nominated six times for an Academy Award for Best Production Design for ' ...

, and editor

Lee Smith Lee Smith is the name of: Arts, entertainment and media *Lee Smith (fiction author) (born 1944), American author of fiction *Lee Smith (film editor) (born 1960), Australian film editor *Lee Smith (musician) (born 1983), American drummer *Lee Smith ...

. ''The Prestige'' was released on October 20, 2006, to positive reviews and grossed $109 million worldwide against a production budget of $40 million. It received

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nominations for Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography.

Plot

In 1890s London, Robert Angier and Alfred Borden work as

plants Plants are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic eukaryotes of the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all curr ...

for a magician under the mentorship of stage engineer John Cutter. During a water tank trick, Angier's wife, Julia, is unable to unbind her hands, fails to escape and drowns. Angier, devastated, blames Borden for using the incorrect knot, causing her death. When Angier asks Borden which knot he used, Borden claims not to know. The two become bitter enemies and rivals. Angier and Borden launch their own magic careers, with Angier working with Cutter, and Borden with the mysterious Fallon. The two sabotage each other's performances, costing Borden two fingers in a failed

bullet catch The bullet catch is a stage magic illusion in which a magician appears to catch a bullet fired directly at them ⁠— often in the mouth, sometimes in the hand or sometimes caught with other items such as a dinner plate. The bullet catch ma ...

while Angier's disappearing-birdcage act kills a pigeon and injures a volunteer. Borden debuts the Transported Man, in which he appears to travel instantly between two wardrobes on opposite ends of the stage. Angier eclipses Borden's success with his own imitation, but is dissatisfied with being forced to use a body double named Root after failing to discern Borden's method. Borden finds and approaches Root, and suggests that he is being underpaid. Root then sabotages a series of performances, seeking a higher fee, leading Angier and Cutter to retire the trick altogether, considering Root to be too volatile to be relied upon. Obsessed with Borden's method, Angier sends his assistant Olivia as a triple-agent to steal the trick behind the Transported Man, however Olivia falls in love with Borden. With her help, Borden sabotages Angier's act, crippling his leg in the process. Confronted by Angier, Olivia gives him a copy of Borden's

encoded In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication ...

diary. Angier acquires the keyword "TESLA" by threatening to kill Fallon. The diary takes Angier to America to meet scientist

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla ( ; ,"Tesla"
''

Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These invention ...

, Tesla has the machine delivered to Angier but advises him to destroy it, saying it will bring him only misery. Borden's wife, Sarah, is driven to suicide by his contradictory personality, alternately loving and cold. Borden tells Olivia that he never loved Sarah, and that he loves her more. Tired of Borden and Angier's feud, Olivia leaves the relationship. After witnessing Tesla's machine teleport Angier in "the Real Transported Man", Borden admits Angier's victory in their feud, before sneaking backstage and witnessing Angier fall through a trapdoor and drown in a tank. He is discovered by Cutter and turned over to the police. Unable to prove his innocence, Borden is found guilty of murder and

sentenced to death Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

. Tesla's machine is sold off to the wealthy Lord Caldlow, a purported magic enthusiast. Cutter visits Caldlow to advise him to destroy the machine and is shocked to discover that Caldlow is Angier, and is alive and well. Visited by "Caldlow" in prison, Borden offers the secret to his "Transported Man" in exchange for his daughter's safety, but Angier rebuffs him, saying that his own trick is better. Cutter is disgusted that Angier allowed Borden to be sentenced to death, but agrees to help dispose of Tesla's machine. Borden is hanged for Angier's murder. Angier goes back to the theatre. A stranger enters and fatally shoots Angier, revealing himself and the now late Borden to have been identical twins, who shared the identities of Borden and Fallon to facilitate their Transported Man. Angier confesses his method, using Tesla's machine to replicate himself before drowning the original in a tank underneath the stage. Borden mocks him for creating such an expensive, complicated solution for such a simple trick. The machine and deceased Angiers are destroyed in a fire, while the surviving Borden is reunited with his daughter by Cutter.

Cast

*

Hugh Jackman Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian actor. Beginning in theatre and television, he landed his breakthrough role as James "Logan" Howlett / Wolverine in the 20th Century Fox ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2017), a role ...

as Robert "The Great Danton" Angier / Lord Caldlow, an

aristocratic Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word's ...

magician. Nolan cast Jackman, stating that Angier "has a wonderful understanding of the interaction between a performer and a live audience", a quality he believed Jackman possessed. Jackman based his portrayal of Angier on 1950s-era magician Channing Pollock. Jackman also portrays Gerald Root, an alcoholic double used for Angier's ''New Transported Man''. *

Christian Bale Christian Charles Philip Bale (born 30 January 1974) is an English actor. Known for his versatility and physical transformations for his roles, he has been a leading man in films of several genres. He has received various accolades, including ...

as Alfred "The Professor" Borden / Bernard Fallon, a

working-class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

magician. While Nolan had previously cast Bale as

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

in ''

Batman Begins ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...

'' (2005), he did not consider Bale for the role of Borden until Bale contacted him about the script. Nolan subsequently believed that Bale was "exactly right" for the part and that it was "unthinkable" for anyone else to play it. Nolan suggested that the actors not read the original novel, but Bale ignored the advice. *

Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite; 14 March 1933) is an English actor. Known for his distinctive Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films in a career spanning seven decades, and is considered a British film ico ...

as John Cutter, the stage engineer (''ingenieur'') who works with Angier and Borden. Caine had previously collaborated with Nolan and Bale in ''Batman Begins''. Nolan noted that the part had been written "before I'd ever met" Caine. Caine described Cutter as "a teacher, a father and a guide to Angier". In trying to create the character's nuanced portrait, Caine altered his voice and posture. *

Scarlett Johansson Scarlett Ingrid Johansson (; born November 22, 1984) is an American actress. The world's highest-paid actress in 2018 and 2019, she has featured multiple times on the ''Forbes'' Celebrity 100 list. ''Time'' magazine named her one of the 100 ...

as Olivia Wenscombe, Angier and Borden's assistant. Nolan was "very keen" for Johansson to play the role, and when he met with her to discuss it, "she just loved the character". *

Piper Perabo Piper Lisa Perabo () (born October 31, 1976) is an American actress. Following her breakthrough in the comedy-drama film '' Coyote Ugly'' (2000), she starred in ''The Prestige'' (2006), '' Angel Has Fallen'' (2019), and as CIA agent Annie Walk ...

as Julia McCullough, Milton the Magician's assistant and Angier's wife. *

Rebecca Hall Rebecca Maria Hall (born 3 May 1982) is an English actress and filmmaker. She made her first onscreen appearance at age 10 in the 1992 television adaptation of ''The Camomile Lawn'', directed by her father, Sir Peter Hall. Her professional s ...

as Sarah Borden, Borden's wife. Hall had to relocate from

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

to Los Angeles in order to shoot the film, although the film itself takes place in London. *

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

as

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla ( ; ,"Tesla"
''

Nolan contacted Bowie, who initially turned down the part. A lifelong fan, Nolan flew out to New York to pitch the role to Bowie in person, telling him no one else could possibly play the part; Bowie accepted after a few minutes. *

Andy Serkis Andrew Clement Serkis (born 20 April 1964) is an English actor, director, and producer. He is best known for his performance capture roles comprising motion capture acting, animation, and voice work for computer-generated characters such as Goll ...

as Mr. Alley, Tesla's assistant. Serkis said he played Alley with the belief that he was "once a corporation man who got excited by this maverick, Tesla, so jumped ship and went with the maverick". Serkis described Alley as a "gatekeeper", a "conman", and "a mirror image of Michael Caine's character." Serkis, a big fan of Bowie, said he was enjoyable to work with, describing him as "very unassuming, very down to earth... very at ease with himself and funny." *

Ricky Jay Richard Jay Potash (June 26, 1946 – November 24, 2018) was an American stage magician, actor and writer. In a profile for ''The New Yorker'', Mark Singer called Jay "perhaps the most gifted sleight of hand artist alive". In addition to sleigh ...

as Milton the Magician, an older magician who employs Angier and Borden at the beginning of their careers. Jay and Michael Weber trained Jackman and Bale for their roles with brief instruction in various stage illusions. The magicians gave the actors limited information, allowing them to know enough to pull off a scene. *

Roger Rees Roger Rees (5 May 1944 – 10 July 2015) was a Welsh actor and director, widely known for his stage work. He won an Olivier Award and a Tony Award for his performance as the lead in ''The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby''. He also rece ...

as Owens, a solicitor working for Lord Caldlow. * W. Morgan Sheppard as Merrit, the owner of a theater where Angier initially performs. * Samantha Mahurin as Jess Borden, the daughter of Borden and Sarah. *

Daniel Davis Daniel Davis (born November 26, 1945) is an American film, stage and television actor. Davis is best known for portraying Niles the butler on the sitcom ''The Nanny'' (1993 to 1999), and for his two guest appearances as Professor Moriarty on ...

as the judge presiding over Borden's trial. * Russ Fega as Man in Hotel.

Production

Julian Jarrold Julian Edward Peter Jarrold (born 15 May 1960 in Norwich, Norfolk) is a BAFTA Award-nominated English film and television director. Early life Jarrold was born into the family which founded Jarrolds of Norwich in 1823. He was educated at Gresh ...

's and

Sam Mendes Sir Samuel Alexander Mendes (born 1 August 1965) is a British film and stage director, producer, and screenwriter. In 2000, Mendes was appointed a CBE for his services to drama, and he was Knight Bachelor, knighted in the 2020 New Year Honour ...

's producer approached Christopher Priest for an adaptation of his novel ''

The Prestige ''The Prestige'' is a 1995 fantasy novel by British writer Christopher Priest. It tells the story of a prolonged feud between two stage magicians in late 1800s England. It is epistolary in structure; that is, it purports to be a collection of ...

''. Priest was impressed with Nolan's films ''

Following ''Following'' is a 1998 independent neo-noir crime thriller film written, produced, edited and directed by Christopher Nolan. It tells the story of a young man who follows strangers around the streets of London and is drawn into a criminal unde ...

'' and '' Memento'', and subsequently, producer Valerie Dean brought the book to Nolan's attention. In October 2000, Nolan traveled to the United Kingdom to publicize ''Memento'', as

Newmarket Films Newmarket Films, LLC was an American privately owned independent film production and distribution company and a former film distribution subsidiary of Newmarket Capital Group. The company produced such films as ''The Mexican'', ''Cruel Intentions ...

was having difficulty finding a United States distributor. While in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, Nolan read Priest's book and shared the story with his brother while walking around in

Highgate Highgate ( ) is a suburban area of north London at the northeastern corner of Hampstead Heath, north-northwest of Charing Cross. Highgate is one of the most expensive London suburbs in which to live. It has two active conservation organisati ...

(a location later featured in the scene where Angier ransoms Borden's stage engineer in

Highgate Cemetery Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...

). The development process for ''The Prestige'' began as a reversal of their earlier collaboration: Jonathan Nolan had pitched his initial story for ''Memento'' to his brother during a

road trip A road trip, sometimes spelled roadtrip, is a long-distance journey on the road. Typically, road trips are long distances travelled by automobile. History First road trips by automobile The world's first recorded long-distance road trip by t ...

. A year later, the option on the book became available and was purchased by

Aaron Ryder Aaron Ryder is a prolific and Academy Award nominated feature film producer. Early in his career, he was a key creative element of Christopher Nolan's '' Memento'' (2000) and ''The Prestige'' (2006), and cult classic ''Donnie Darko'' (2001). As ...

of Newmarket Films. In late 2001, Nolan became busy with the

post-production Post-production is part of the process of filmmaking, video production, audio production, and photography. Post-production includes all stages of production occurring after principal photography or recording individual program segments. The ...

of ''

Insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...

'', and asked his brother Jonathan to help work on the script. The writing process was a long collaboration between the Nolan brothers, occurring intermittently over a period of five years. In the script, the Nolans emphasized the magic of the story through the dramatic narrative, playing down the visual depiction of stage magic. The three-act screenplay was deliberately structured around the three elements of the film's illusion: the pledge, the turn, and the prestige. "It took a long time to figure out how to achieve cinematic versions of the very

literary device A narrative technique (known for literary fictional narratives as a literary technique, literary device, or fictional device) is any of several specific methods the creator of a narrative uses to convey what they want —in other words, a stra ...

s that drive the intrigue of the story," Christopher Nolan told ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'': "The shifting points of view, the idea of journals within journals and stories within stories. Finding the cinematic equivalents of those literary devices was very complex." Although the film is thematically faithful to the novel, two major changes were made to the plot structure during the adaptation process: the novel's

spiritualism Spiritualism is the metaphysical school of thought opposing physicalism and also is the category of all spiritual beliefs/views (in monism and dualism) from ancient to modern. In the long nineteenth century, Spiritualism (when not lowercase) ...

subplot was removed, and the modern-day

frame story A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

was replaced with Borden's wait for the gallows. Priest approved of the adaptation, describing it as "an extraordinary and brilliant script, a fascinating adaptation of my novel." Tower Theater (Los Angeles)

In early 2003, Nolan planned to direct the film before the production of ''

Batman Begins ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...

'' accelerated. Following the release of ''Batman Begins'', Nolan started up the project again, negotiating with Jackman and Bale in October 2005. While the screenplay was still being written, production designer Nathan Crowley began the set design process in Nolan's garage, employing a "visual script" consisting of

scale model A scale model is a physical model which is geometrically similar to an object (known as the prototype). Scale models are generally smaller than large prototypes such as vehicles, buildings, or people; but may be larger than small prototypes ...

s, images, drawings, and notes. Jonathan and Christopher Nolan finished the final shooting draft on January 13, 2006, and began production three days later on January 16. Filming ended on April 9. Crowley and his crew searched Los Angeles for almost seventy locations that resembled

fin de siècle () is a French term meaning "end of century,” a phrase which typically encompasses both the meaning of the similar English idiom "turn of the century" and also makes reference to the closing of one era and onset of another. Without context ...

London. Jonathan Nolan visited

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

to research Nikola Tesla and based the electric bulb scene on actual experiments conducted by Tesla. Nathan Crowley helped design the scene for Tesla's invention; It was shot in the parking lot of the

Mount Wilson Observatory The Mount Wilson Observatory (MWO) is an astronomical observatory in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The MWO is located on Mount Wilson, a peak in the San Gabriel Mountains near Pasadena, northeast of Los Angeles. The observat ...

. Influenced by a "Victorian modernist aesthetic," Crowley chose four locations in the

Broadway theater district New York City's Theater District (sometimes spelled Theatre District, and officially zoned as the "Theater Subdistrict") is an area and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan where most Broadway theaters are located, as well as many other theaters, ...

in

downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...

for the film's stage magic performances: the Los Angeles Theatre, the

Palace Theatre Palace Theatre, or Palace Theater, is the name of many theatres in different countries, including: Australia *Palace Theatre, Melbourne, Victoria *Palace Theatre, Sydney, New South Wales Canada *Palace Theatre, housed in the Robillard Block, Mo ...

, the Los Angeles Belasco, and the Tower Theatre. Crowley also turned a portion of the Universal

back lot A backlot is an area behind or adjoining a movie studio containing permanent exterior buildings for outdoor scenes in filmmaking or television productions, or space for temporary set construction. Uses Some movie studios build a wide variety of ...

into Victorian London.

Osgood Castle Redstone Castle, also known as Cleveholm or Osgood Castle, is a mansion south of Redstone, Colorado, United States. It is a large timber frame structure built in the early 20th century as the home of John C. Osgood, founder of the Colorado Fuel ...

in Colorado was also used as a location. Nolan built only one set for the film, an "under-the-stage section that houses the machinery that makes the larger illusions work," preferring to simply dress various Los Angeles locations and sound stages to stand in for

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

and Victorian England. In contrast to most period pieces, Nolan kept up the quick pace of production by shooting with handheld cameras, and refrained from using artificial lighting in some scenes, relying instead on natural light on location. Costume designer Joan Bergin chose attractive, modern Victorian fashions for Scarlett Johansson; cinematographer Wally Pfister captured the mood with soft earth tones as white and black colors provided background contrasts, bringing actors' faces to the foreground. Editing, scoring, and mixing finished on September 22, 2006.

Themes

The rivalry between Angier and Borden dominates the film. Obsession, secrecy, and sacrifice fuel the battle, as both magicians contribute their fair share to a deadly duel of one-upmanship, with disastrous results. Angier's obsession with beating Borden costs him Cutter's friendship, while providing him with a collection of his own dead clones; Borden's obsession with maintaining the secrecy of his twin leads Sarah to question their relationship, eventually resulting in her suicide when she suspects the truth. Angier and one of the twins both lose Olivia's love because of their inhumanity. Finally, Borden is hanged and the last copy of Angier shot. Their struggle is also expressed through

class warfare Class conflict, also referred to as class struggle and class warfare, is the political tension and economic antagonism that exists in society because of socio-economic competition among the social classes or between rich and poor. The forms ...

: Borden as ''The Professor'', a working-class magician who gets his hands dirty, versus Angier as ''The Great Danton'', a classy, elitist showman whose accent makes him appear American. Film critic Matt Brunson claimed that a complex theme of duality is exemplified by Angier and Borden, that the film chooses not to depict either magician as good or evil. Angier's theft of Borden's teleportation illusion in the film echoes many real-world examples of stolen tricks among magicians. Outside the film, similar rivalries include magicians

John Nevil Maskelyne John Nevil Maskelyne (22 December 183918 May 1917) was an English stage magician and inventor of the pay toilet, along with other Victorian-era devices. He worked with magicians George Alfred Cooke and David Devant, and many of his illusions a ...

and

Harry Kellar Harry Kellar (July 11, 1849 – March 10, 1922) was an American magician who presented large stage shows during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Kellar was a predecessor of Harry Houdini and a successor of Robert Heller and Isaiah Hugh ...

's dispute over a levitation illusion. Gary Westfahl of ''

Locus Online ''Locus: The Magazine of The Science Fiction & Fantasy Field'', founded in 1968, is an American magazine published monthly in Oakland, California. It is the news organ and trade journal for the English-language science fiction and fantasy fields ...

'' also notes a "new proclivity for mayhem" in the film over the novel, citing the murder/suicide disposition of Angier's duplicates and intensified violent acts of revenge and counter-revenge. This "relates to a more general alteration in the events and tone of the film" rather than significantly changing the underlying themes. Nor is this theme of cutthroat competition limited to

sleight of hand Sleight of hand (also known as prestidigitation or ''legerdemain'' ()) refers to fine motor skills when used by performing artists in different art forms to entertain or manipulate. It is closely associated with close-up magic, card magic, card ...

: the script incorporates the popular notion that

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla ( ; ,"Tesla"
''

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...

were directly engaged in the

war of the currents The war of the currents was a series of events surrounding the introduction of competing electric power transmission systems in the late 1880s and early 1890s. It grew out of two lighting systems developed in the late 1870s and early 1880s; arc ...

, a rivalry over electrical standards, which appears in the film in parallel to Angier and Borden's competition for magical supremacy. In the novel, Tesla and Edison serve as foils for Angier and Borden, respectively. Den Shewman of ''Creative Screenwriting'' says the film asks how far one would go to devote oneself to an art. The character of

Chung Ling Soo William Ellsworth Robinson (April 2, 1861 – March 24, 1918) was an American magician who went by the stage name Chung Ling Soo (). He is mostly remembered today for his accidental death due to a failed bullet catch trick. Early years Robinson ...

, according to Shewman, is a metaphor for this theme.Shewman, Den. (September/October 2006). Nothing Up Their Sleeves: Christopher & Jonathan Nolan on the Art of Magic, Murder, and 'The Prestige'. ''Creative Screenwriting''. Vol. 13:5. Film critic Alex Manugian refers to this theme as the "meaning of commitment." Nicolas Rapold of ''

Film Comment ''Film Comment'' is the official publication of Film at Lincoln Center. It features reviews and analysis of mainstream, art-house, and avant-garde filmmaking from around the world. Founded in 1962 and originally released as a quarterly, ''Film Co ...

'' addresses the points raised by Shewman and Manugian in terms of the film's "refracted take on

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

": For Manugian the central theme is "obsession," but he also notes the supporting themes of the "nature of deceit" and "science as magic." Manugian criticizes the Nolans for trying to "ram too many themes into the story." The meta theme is the screenwriters Nolans as the magicians, creating a trick to fool movie audiences, with the audience doing their part as willing participants in suspending some disbelief to get there.

Release

Touchstone Pictures Touchstone Pictures, Inc. was an American film production label of Walt Disney Studios, founded and owned by The Walt Disney Company. Feature films released under the Touchstone label were produced and financed by Walt Disney Studios, and featu ...

opted to move the release date forward a week, from the original October 27, to October 20, 2006. The film earned $14.8 million on opening weekend in the United States, debuting at #1. It grossed $109 million, including $53 million from the United States. The film received nominations for the

Academy Award for Best Art Direction The Academy Award for Best Production Design recognizes achievement for art direction in art director#In film, film. The category's original name was Best Art Direction, but was changed to its current name in 2012 for the 85th Academy Awards. Th ...

(

Nathan Crowley Nathan Crowley (born 28 February 1966) is an English production designer and a former art director, who is best known for his collaborations with Christopher Nolan. He was nominated six times for an Academy Award for Best Production Design for ' ...

and Julie Ochipinti) and the

Academy Award for Best Cinematography The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work on one particular motion picture. History In its first film season, 1927–28, this award (like others such as the acting awards) ...

(

Wally Pfister Walter C. Pfister (born July 8, 1961) is an American director and former cinematographer, who is best known for his work with filmmaker Christopher Nolan. Some of his collaborations with Nolan include '' Memento'' (2000), ''The Dark Knight Tril ...

), as well as a nomination for the

Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form Hugo or HUGO may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese * Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback * Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on a ...

in 2007.

Critical response

On

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

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, the film holds an approval rating of 76% based on 202 reviews, with an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Full of twists and turns, ''The Prestige'' is a dazzling period piece that never stops challenging the audience."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

assigned the film a weighted average score of 66 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...

gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. Claudia Puig of ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' described the film as "one of the most innovative, twisting, turning

art film An art film (or arthouse film) is typically an independent film, aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made primarily f ...

s of the past decade." Drew McWeeny gave the film a glowing review, saying it demands repeat viewing, with

Peter Travers Peter Joseph Travers (born ) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film interview prog ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' agreeing.

Richard Roeper Richard E. Roeper (born October 17, 1959) is an American columnist and film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times''. He co-hosted the television series '' At the Movies'' with Roger Ebert from 2000 to 2008, serving as the late Gene Siskel's success ...

and guest critic

A.O. Scott Anthony Oliver Scott (born July 10, 1966) is an American journalist and cultural critic. He has been chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' since 2004, a title he shares with Manohla Dargis. Early life Scott was born on July 10, 1966 in ...

gave the film a "two thumbs up" rating. Todd Gilchrist of

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

applauded the performances of Jackman and Bale whilst praising Nolan for making "this complex story as easily understandable and effective as he made the outwardly straightforward comic book adaptation (''

Batman Begins ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...

'') dense and sophisticated... any truly great performance is almost as much showmanship as it is actual talent, and Nolan possesses both in spades." ''

CNN.com CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

'' and ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the creat ...

'' film critic Tom Charity listed it among his best films of 2006.

Philip French Philip Neville French Order of the British Empire, OBE (28 August 1933 – 27 October 2015) was an English film critic and radio producer. French began his career in journalism in the late 1950s, before eventually becoming a BBC Radio prod ...

of ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'' recommended the film, comparing the rivalry between the two main characters to that of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

and Salieri in the highly acclaimed ''

Amadeus Amadeus may refer to: *Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), prolific and influential composer of classical music *Amadeus (name), a given name and people with the name * ''Amadeus'' (play), 1979 stage play by Peter Shaffer * ''Amadeus'' (film), ...

''. On the other hand, Dennis Harvey of ''

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'' criticized the film as gimmicky, though he felt the cast did well in underwritten roles. Kirk Honeycutt of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' felt that characters "...are little more than sketches. Remove their obsessions, and the two magicians have little personality." Nonetheless, the two reviewers praised David Bowie as Tesla, as well as the production values and cinematography. On a simpler note, Emanuel Levy has said: "Whether viewers perceive ''The Prestige'' as intricately complex or just unnecessarily complicated would depend to a large degree on their willingness to suspend disbelief for two hours." He gave the film a B grade.

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

gave the film three stars out of four, describing the revelation at the end as a "fundamental flaw" and a "cheat." He wrote, "The pledge of Nolan's ''The Prestige'' is that the film, having been metaphorically sawed in two, will be restored; it fails when it cheats, as, for example, if the whole woman produced on the stage were not the same one so unfortunately cut in two." R.J. Carter of ''The Trades'' felt, "I love a good science fiction story; just tell me in advance." He gave the film a B−. Christopher Priest, who wrote the novel the film is based on, saw it three times as of January 5, 2007, and his reaction was "'Well, holy shit.' I was thinking, 'God, I like that,' and 'Oh, I wish I'd thought of that.'" The film has grown in stature since its release. In 2009, ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' named ''The Prestige'' as one of the best films of the 2000s. The film was included in

American Cinematographer ''American Cinematographer'' is a magazine published monthly by the American Society of Cinematographers. It focuses on the art and craft of cinematography, covering domestic and foreign feature productions, television productions, short films, mu ...

's "Best-Shot Film of 1998-2008" list, ranking at 36. More than 17,000 people around the world participated in the final vote. In 2020, ''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

'' magazine ranked it among "The 100 Greatest Movies Of The 21st Century".

Music

The

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...

was written by English musician and composer David Julyan. Julyan had previously collaborated with director Christopher Nolan on ''

Following ''Following'' is a 1998 independent neo-noir crime thriller film written, produced, edited and directed by Christopher Nolan. It tells the story of a young man who follows strangers around the streets of London and is drawn into a criminal unde ...

'', '' Memento'' and ''

Insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...

''. Following the film's narrative, the soundtrack had three sections: the Pledge, the Turn, and the Prestige.

Track listing

Some critics were disappointed with the score, acknowledging that while it worked within the context of the film, it was not enjoyable by itself. Jonathan Jarry of ''

SoundtrackNet Soundtrack.Net (originally SoundtrackNet) is a website dedicated to film and television music. History Created in 1997 by Amélie E. Koran and Dan Goldwasser at Carnegie Mellon University, Soundtrack.Net has grown over the past decade to become o ...

'' described the score as "merely functional," establishing the atmosphere of dread but never taking over. Although the reviewer was interested with the score's notion, Jarry found the execution was "extremely disappointing." Christopher Coleman of ''Tracksounds'' felt that though it was "...a perfectly fitting score," it was completely overwhelmed by the film, and totally unnoticed at times. Christian Clemmensen of ''

Filmtracks Filmtracks.com is a modern film score review website created and maintained by its sole reviewer, Christian Clemmensen. Since the launch of Filmtracks in 1996, the website has reviewed nearly two-thousand soundtracks dating as far back as 1954, t ...

'' recommended the soundtrack for those who enjoyed Julyan's work on the film, and noted that it was not for those who expected "any semblance of intellect or enchantment in the score to match the story of the film." Clemmensen called the score lifeless, "constructed on a bed of simplistic string chords and dull electronic soundscapes." The song " Analyse" by

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

frontman

Thom Yorke Thomas Edward Yorke (born 7 October 1968) is an English musician and the main vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Radiohead. A multi-instrumentalist, he mainly plays guitar and keyboards and is noted for his falsetto. He has been describe ...

is played over the credits.

Home media

The Region 1 disc is by

Buena Vista Home Entertainment Buena ( ) is a borough in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,603,DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

and

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...

formats. The Warner Bros. Region 2 DVD was released on March 12, 2007. It is also available in both BD and regionless

HD DVD HD DVD (short for High Definition Digital Versatile Disc) is an obsolete high-density optical disc format for storing data and playback of high-definition video. Supported principally by Toshiba, HD DVD was envisioned to be the successor to th ...

in Europe (before HD DVD was canceled). Special features are minimal, with the documentary ''Director's Notebook: The Prestige – Five Making-of Featurettes'', running roughly twenty minutes combined, an art gallery and the trailer. Nolan did not contribute to a commentary as he felt the film primarily relied on an audience's reaction and did not want to remove the mystery from the story. The film was released by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on

Ultra HD Blu-ray Ultra HD Blu-ray (4K Ultra HD, UHD-BD, or 4K Blu-ray) is a digital optical disc data storage format that is an enhanced variant of Blu-ray. Ultra HD Blu-ray discs are incompatible with existing standard Blu-ray players, though a traditional Bl ...

on December 18, 2017 in the United Kingdom. The film was also released by

Touchstone Home Entertainment Touchstone may refer to: * Touchstone (assaying tool), a stone used to identify precious metals * Touchstone (metaphor), a means of assaying relative merits of a concept Entertainment * ''Touchstone'' (album), a 1982 album by Chick Corea * T ...

on Ultra HD Blu-ray on December 19, 2017 in the United States.

Notes

References

External links

* * * * * *
''The Prestige'' script
at DailyScript.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Prestige, The 2006 films 2006 thriller films 2000s historical thriller films 2000s mystery thriller films American films about revenge American historical thriller films American mystery thriller films American nonlinear narrative films British films about revenge British historical thriller films British mystery thriller films British nonlinear narrative films Cultural depictions of Nikola Tesla Films about cloning Films about magic and magicians Films based on British novels Films based on science fiction novels Films directed by Christopher Nolan Films produced by Christopher Nolan Films produced by Emma Thomas Films scored by David Julyan Films set in the 1890s Films set in the 1900s Films set in Colorado Films set in London Films shot in Colorado Films shot in Los Angeles Films with screenplays by Christopher Nolan Films with screenplays by Jonathan Nolan Newmarket films Syncopy Inc. films Teleportation in films Touchstone Pictures films Warner Bros. films 2000s English-language films 2000s American films 2000s British films

Plot

Cast

Production

Themes

Release

Critical response

Music

Track listing

Home media

See also

Notes

References

External links