After Rewatching The Prestige, I Now Think It's Nolan's Best Movie. Here's Why

For some people, Christopher Nolan can do no wrong.

Not me, though. I've been on and off with the beloved director for quite some time now. I think Tenet was the final straw for me, as I had some pretty major problems with that movie. However, I was kind of becoming less of a fan even earlier than that with The Dark Knight Rises, which I think is one of the weaker Batman movies.

Honestly, Inception is the last film that I truly loved from Nolan. So, for a time, I thought that would forever remain my favorite Christopher Nolan film. However, after rewatching 2006's The Prestige, I think I have a new favorite film of his. Here's why.

The Film Is The Rare Case Where It's Actually Better When You Know The Twist In Advance

If you're reading this article, I'm going to assume that you've already watched The Prestige, so I don’t mind spoiling the twist.

As you know, The Prestige is about two rival magicians named Robert Angier and Alfred Borden (played by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale, respectively). Their beef begins when Angier’s wife dies during a water tank trick, as it was Borden’s job to tie the knots a certain way so that she could escape, but she can’t.

This pushes the former duo to break up and go their separate ways. This also means developing their own separate acts, and hiring new helpers, with Borden hiring an unknown man named Fallon. But, in the process, both magicians try to sabotage one another, which leads to some dangerous results.

Anyway, Borden’s biggest trick is what’s known as The Transported Man, which involves teleportation. This maddens Angier because he can’t figure out the trick, no matter how hard he tries. Not only that, but he even goes so far as to believing it must be a clone of his former partner (which I’ll get into later).

The actual reveal, or rather, The Prestige, as it were? Borden’s engineer, Fallon, is actually Borden’s twin brother, who was the real person he used for The Transported Man trick. And, let me tell you, knowing this in advance and watching The Prestige a second time makes the movie so much better. It’s like you’re in on the trick yourself, and it’s amusing watching Jackman’s character get so flustered at not knowing.

In this way, it makes the movie way more intriguing upon multiple viewings, and I don’t feel that way about any other Nolan film. Because whenever I rewatch any of them, I feel like the magic is gone (pun not intended). Not so with The Prestige, though, which is even better the second time around.

Nolan's Approach To Realism Works Better In This Film Than Any Of His Other Movies

I really think that where you rank Nolan’s films all depends on what you like most about the director’s work. For example, my colleague, Alexandra Ramos, loves Interstellar, calling it her favorite Nolan movie, as she really loves the themes. But, for me, I genuinely do not like that film.

Our very own Sean O’Connell gave Tenet a five star review, saying how it’s “hard to imagine movies getting much better than this,” but I honestly think it’s Nolan’s worst film. And, I think that’s the genius of Nolan, since he has something for everybody. Oppenheimer won Best Picture last year, but I thought it was just okay.

I think this is because what I personally love most about Nolan is his realistic approach to every subject, especially with the more out-there ideas. Realism is like Nolan’s calling card, so I’m highly intrigued with how he’ll handle the fantastical elements of Homer’s classic with the upcoming Odyssey.

But, I truly think his approach to realism works best in The Prestige. Because at its heart, this is a really out-there story. That said, it never goes off the rails, and I think that’s because Nolan made all these bizarre events feel like they could actually happen.

For example, just look at the Tesla/Edison subplot that is going on in the background. Much like Angier and Borden are at war with each other, so are Tesla and Edison. But, Tesla builds a cloning machine, and it genuinely feels like it could really work.

This is important, because this movie could have seemed silly, but Nolan’s realism makes the actual human drama work, because his style made the “silly” stuff seem realistic, which is no small feat!

At The Same Time, It's Also Nolan's Most Out-There Movie

You would think that a man with three Batman movies under his belt, and a film about people entering dreams would have been his most out-there films, but no. It’s The Prestige.

I want to circle back to the whole cloning subplot, since there is nothing else like it in Nolan’s filmography. This is especially since the rationale behind it is pretty much just, well, Tesla was kind of kooky, so he probably would build a cloning machine.

Inversely, let’s look at a movie like Tenet. One might say, Oh, that’s just a time travel movie, but no. It’s not. It’s about “time inversion,” and entropy. NOT time travel. No, that’s too simple.

Or what about Inception? If Nolan was any other director, he'd probably spend more time making truly out-there dream sequences, like in the 2006 film, Paprika. But, the dreams really aren’t all that out-there in Inception. A city folding in on itself actually seems kind of tame compared to some of my dreams, and I’m sure I’m not alone.

Batman movies are known for their “realism,” which is cool, but I actually like the silliness of films like Batman & Robin. That said, Nolan took a much more sober approach to these films, which changed the landscape of superhero flicks for a while, with a lot of them being grittier as a direct result.

But, The Prestige? It's weird, and while there is a sort of realism to it, it’s the one where I feel Nolan lets his freak flag fly the most, which is certainly enjoyable. I hope he does the same for The Odyssey.

The Acting Might Be The Best We've Ever Gotten Out Of A Nolan Film

Yes, I know. Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. won Academy Awards for Oppenheimer, but honestly, I think The Prestige has the best acting in any Nolan film.

Everybody is good, across the board. Jackman portrays both a tormented man, but also a conniving, horrible person. Bale is playing two roles, both as Borden, but also as Fallon, and the first time through, we have no idea that Bale is doing dual roles, which is great directing (and acting) to be sure.

Frequent collaborator Michael Caine is excellent as another stage engineer, and Scarlett Johansson fits right in as the magicians’ assistant.

My favorite actor, though, is David Bowie as Nikola Tesla, which is probably the most inspired casting in the film. His performance is both quirky, but serious, and I always loved when Bowie would show up in films. It was always good.

In fact, the acting is doing the legwork in this film as that’s what makes it all feel so believable.

No disrespect to The Illusionist, which also came out in 2006, but if the acting was as good in that one as it is in The Prestige, then it might have been more warmly received.

In The End, I Now Think It's Nolan's Most Daring And Enjoyable Film

The cool thing about Nolan is that he always swings for the fences. Yes, movies like Insomnia, Memento, and Following are more subdued than films like Interstellar, Batman Begins, and Dunkirk, but even his “subtle” movies have big ideas (like not being able to sleep due to the polar day in Alaska, or not being able to remember something from only a few moments ago).

Even though Interstellar has wormholes, and Tenet has…time inversion, I still think The Prestige is Nolan’s most daring and enjoyable film, and mostly because fun is really at its center.

Now, I’m not saying that this is a lighthearted movie, as it’s definitely not. There’s death, and all kinds of horrible acts. That said, I still think that at the film’s core, it is Nolan having his most fun.

The magicians trying to one-up each other is constantly enjoyable to watch, and we’re always locked in to the results. Plus, the weird sci-fi side of the story is unique in Nolan’s mostly serious catalogue, which really makes it stand out.

All of these factors make The Prestige my favorite Christopher Nolan movie, and if you haven’t seen it in awhile, watch it again. It’s worth a second look.