The Prestige – the ultimate twist?

I saw The Prestige with Michelle last night. It’s a movie with a whole load of big names – Michael Caine, Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, David Bowie and several others – and it’s directed by Christopher Nolan, who did the stunningly clever Memento a few years ago. The Prestige is a great film too – all about two rival magicians and their obsession with each other’s tricks. The title comes from a description of the three stages of an illusion – first, the setup (“pledge”), where the magician shows the audience something that appears ordinary; second, the performance (“turn”), where the magician makes the ordinary act extraordinary. Lastly, there is the “Prestige”, where the effect of the illusion is produced.
I left the film marvelling at the twists and turns, but it appears there is even more to the film than meets the eye. The final line of the the film implies that “you’re looking for the secret… but you won’t find it. Because you want to be fooled.” the film may have a “Prestige” all of its own – as the posters on The Ultimate Twist (IMDB) are discussing. I won’t ruin it here – but suffice to say you should go and watch. The tagline – “Are you watching closely” – couldn’t be more apt. Oh, and if you haven’t seen it, the above links do give the game away a bit…