Not as good as it could get

Rating: 9/10 (9 April 2007)

The movie has all the right ingredients for a good simmering thriller. Two magicians with their bag of tricks, motive for revenge, class actors in Caine, Jackman and Bale, and above all the genius of Christopher Nolan.
However, at the end quite a few viewers may end up feeling a bit let down. Owing to Nolan's gift of offering an ingenious storyline with a twist at the ending, (Memento, Batman Begins), the expectations were always going to be very high. And indeed, the polished storytelling, the beautiful sets and the tight script all add up to a good package. But for people trying to figure out the movie, and guess the ending, most will feel a bit let down at the ease at which this is possible.
The cast is nicely rounded out. The two magicians do a very good job, and are very well supported by Michael Caine. Scarlett Johansson has little screen time, but performs well. The film is undoubtedly good, but one gets the feeling it could have been much better.