I'm surprised yet not at all shocked ...

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 2006)

At the professional critical reviews that "The Prestiege" has been garnering. To claim that The Nolan Brothers have under-written or half-directed this movie, or that ANY of the players on screen gave less than stellar performances is as great an injustice as walking out on the film halfway through or before it's wonderful climax. In fact, I'm convinced that some of the critics may HAVE done just that!! Sure, some of the "twists" are a bit predictable for the above average cinema sleuth, but overall, there is a very clear dichotomy between the audiences in the film watching the "magic" on stage wanting to believe it is real, and the audience in the theaters watching this film and wanting to believe that the magic ISN'T real.
This film is easily the best I've seen this calendar year, and The Nolans are quickly rising to the upper eschelon of my favorite filmmakers. Again, wonderful, layered performances from all of the involved cast, and beautiful set design and cinematography all around. If you're a fan of any of the above, or haven't seen a great mystery/suspense thriller with twists and turns that simply IMPLORE you to stuff more popcorn in your mouth to stave off the anticipation of "how did they do that!?" then this is a SURE BET for you.