The Prestige Background

The Prestige Background

The Prestige is one of Christopher Nolan’s famed cinematography works, staring notable actors including Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman, as well as renowned musician David Bowie. The thriller was released on October 17, 2006 and distributed by Warner Bros. Nolan’s brother, Jonathan Nolan, acted as screenwriter and developed the movie from the 1995 novel The Prestige by Christopher Priest.

The book is based around a rivalry between two magicians, Robert Angier (played by Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (played by Christian Bale). Their rivalry takes them both to extreme lengths in order to best each other as the world’s best magician, but with this comes the consequences of excessive greed and power.

The movie was a big box office success, grossing $110 million against a $40 million budget. It currently holds a 7.09/10 Rotten Tomatoes rating, was praised for the acting, and was nominated for multiple Academy Award nominations. However, renowned film critic, Roger Ebert, stated that he felt the movie was a "cheat" due to the dissatisfying ending twist.

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