Every great magic trick consists of three acts

Rating: 4/10 (28 May 2007)

The first act is called "The Pledge"; The magician shows you something ordinary, but of course... it probably isn't. In this particular case, the audience is shown nothing less than Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale displaying their magical acting and accompanied by a magic deck with cards so valuable as Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, Andy Serkis and David Bowie.
The second act is called "The Turn"; The magician makes his ordinary something do something extraordinary. The magician goes by the name of Christopher Nolan, and his something extraordinary is the filming of this movie, which captivates from the very beginning: the settings, the pace, the staging, everything is managed in a way the audience will but get hooked.
Now if you're looking for the secret... you won't find it, that's why there's a third act called, "The Prestige"; this is the part with the twists and turns, where lives hang in the balance, and you see something shocking you've never seen before. True. But if what you never saw before comes to be some "Deus ex machina" sleight of hand, part of the audience shall feel cheated; and all the previous work, though highly remarkable, will end up being part of a trick that lacks "the prestige".