Advantages: Great charecters, script. Disadvantages: Not much at all
From the director that brought us Memento and the two latest Batman films, Christopher Nolan excels himself with this dramatic thriller, The Prestige.
The Plot
The film begins with Michael Caine's character telling a young girl about a magic trick. Each magic trick has three parts, the Pledge, the Turn and then finally The Prestige.
The film follows two starting magicians, Angier and Borden. They start off as good friends but then turn into rivals when Angier's wife is killed in a magic trick that went wrong.
The two spend the film, trying to work out each other's secrets and ruin their tricks, eventually ruining their livelihood.
Borden then however discovers a trick, the ultimate trick. This trick makes Angier loose his mind trying to work out how the hell Borden does this trick.
The Characters
Hugh Jackman ...
Advantages: Expertly layered & constructed plot, great performances Disadvantages: Some may see the ending coming?
For a good year or so, this film was sitting on my shelf unloved and unwatched - when I was eventually drawn to it after I realised it had been directed by Christopher Nolan (of Memento, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight ...), I discovered just what I'd been missing. For my money, this is simply an outstanding film in so many ways. A strong cast produce performances to match reputations while the plot twists and turns, skillfully keeping its secrets from the viewer. Stylistically too, The Prestige is a great success. It captures the look and feel of the era, when Magic, Trickery and Science were rather less distinct than we consider them now.
The "prestige" of the title alludes to the final act of the typical tripartite magic trick. First comes "the Pledge", in which the magician shows the audience something apparently quite regular ...
Advantages: A tense, suspense filled drama Disadvantages: None
As far as space films go, I am not a big fan so it was with some trepidation that I took this one in. After a few minutes, it is clear that this is going to stand head and shoulders above the rest which is due, in large part, to the immense performance of Academy Award Winner Tom Hanks, but also to a tremendous true story of bravery, skill and hope.
A year after the epic moon landing of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, Apollo 13 was scheduled for a moon landing of its own. The original crew of Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) and Ken Mattingley (Gary Sinise) are just days away from the launch when Mattingley is pulled from the team due to the belief that he may have been exposed to infection.
Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) steps inand after a routine launch, disaster strikes, leading to the immortal line "Houston, we ...
