This is the movie "The Illusionist" tried to be...

Rating: 9/10 (20 October 2006)

"The Prestige" is the kind of movie you wish will come after sitting through 25 other bad movies. Simply put, this is the best drama I've seen all year. Set in the late 1800's in (mostly) London, the film is about two rival magicians who continually "one up" another on magic acts. The film stars Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, and Michael Caine. Caine plays the mentor of both magicians. The movie is shot out of order and sort of begins with the end. But just when you think you know how the movie really ends, it throws you for a huge twist. I won't divulge into the plot because if I do I'll spoil a lot of it. Let me just say this: I've seen so many movies that very, very few of them are able to surprise me at the end. This is one of those few movies. I was caught completely off guard with the final twist.
In the first hour of the film I quickly realized that this movie is NOT the movie you've seen advertised in theaters and on TV. The trailer makes Bale out to have real magical powers and Jackman out to be the copycat magician. As it turns out, neither is true. (That is NOT a spoiler). This is quickly realized within the first 30 minutes of the movie. The trailer's deception left a sour taste in my mouth, but by the end of the movie you soon figure out why the film's trailer was so deceptive; it's all part of the magic. I can only surmise the trailer was so deceptive because they simply didn't want to give away juicy plot details and spoilers. And I'm glad for it! Normally I despise a film when it's misrepresented in a trailer, but by the end of the movie I had forgotten all about the stupid trailer.
The performances were all very, very strong. However, it's Christian Bale that shines in this film. This is probably his strongest performance yet. (The 2nd strongest being his manic role in "The Machinist.") That's right folks, he was nothing in Batman Begins compared to this movie. Anyways, don't be surprised if he gets some sort of nod from the Academy or the Globes for his role in this.
This is the movie that "The Illusionist" tried to be. If you were left disappointed with "The Illusionist" (as I was), you owe it to yourself to see this magic movie. You'll be happy you did.