4) The Prestige
The Premise: Two rival magicians attempt to outdo the other in various tricks that end in sabotage and disaster. When one is sentenced to death for seemingly murdering the other, their secrets are unraveled, and their true obsessions are revealed.
The Failure: I should start by saying that I found this film very thought-provoking and thoroughly enjoyed it, but I may be a little biased as I’ve always been drawn to the “so obsessive, they go crazy” films. My mind was flying in all different directions trying to piece together each magician’s tricks and oh how jaw-dropping they were, but there was one trick that I just could not believe.
Once again, it comes down to suspension of disbelief. The trick in question is the abrupt introduction of actual magic. In other words, this film about drama, zeal, and real-life tricks threw all that out of the window and became a sci-fi film. If this particular trick wasn’t related to the story, I would have been content, but the fact of the matter is that the electric transporter played an extremely significant role in progressing the story. The Prestige was a beautifully crafted detective-like film that threw it all away when it decided it wanted to be sci-fi. It was that moment when I rolled my eyes and yelled “cop out.”
The Fix: Real magic doesn’t belong. Take it out. Find a better way to explain his grand master trick. Yes, I know it’s based off a book – I have it – but films change the content all the time.