Courtesy of the official website
I have just watched The Prestige. It was such a good movie!!! Everyone has been telling me this but finally i managed to give my own comments. My sister was telling me that i might not like this movie as i am the lazy audience, just want to enjoy myself and not to think too much about what's going on in a movie. However, i definitely enjoyed myself watching this one! After watching the movie, there are so many questions in my head!!! Is it the same for everyone?
Don't read the following part if u haven't watch the movie~~~I won't be responsible for your loss ok hahaha...
Some of my questions are:
1. Does Borden already has a twin brother or he duplicate another him through Tesla?
When approached by Angier to produce a machine, Tesla did mention to Angier that he has produced such a machine before but he did not specify whether it is for Borden or not. If Borden is aware of Tesla's capability of creating the impossible machine, why would Borden offered Tesla's name to Angier, wouldn't he be a afraid that Angier might become more powerful than he is? Also, remember the scene when Sarah said no to Borden when he asked for a cup of tea at her house, the next minute when she opened the door she found another Borden already in the house. This was quite early part of the movie, does it mean that it was a duplicate or the twin brother?
2. In the last part of the movie, Borden told Angier that Cutter knew about this. When is it that Cutter discovered Borden's twin brothers?
Cutter knew from the starting as he is the one who hired Borden to work for him? or only later part of the movie?
3. Why did Borden said he don't know what knot he tied when he went to Julia's funeral?
One possibility could be that it was not Borden but its Fallon who tied the knot the other day. This question is again linked to the question num1, whether Borden already has a twin brother or only later on he managed to have a duplicated created by Tesla. He could also said he don't know what knot he tied to protect himself as he know for sure Angier will be taking revenge against him.
4. Is that correct that the original Angier has already died?
During the first performance, the original Angier dissappeared in the air and accordingly dropped into the water tank. This mean that the Angier after the first performance are all duplicate.
5. Was the whole murder thing to set Borden up or just that Borden walked in by accident?
I think it is a set up, why he agreed to perform 100 times bearing in mind the pain of killing himself everynight..he has to wait~ wait for Broden to walk into his trap..don't u all think so?
That's all for now..if anyone has any view to share , feel free to put in your comments!!!
3 comments:
1. Did Borden have a twin or a clone?
Borden had a twin. The twins switch off being Borden and Fallon. This is supported throughout the movie: one twin loves Olivia and one loves Sarah; that is why Sarah mentions several times that she knows that he actually loves her or that he doesn't love her when he says "I love you." One twin ties Langford Doubles and one ties the simple knot. Clones would have the same taste in everything; the Borden twins obviously do not. The movie shows Borden cutting off his twin's fingers - a clone would have had the same scars as the original. It also explains why Borden was so worried when Angier buried Fallon (his twin); if he had a clone then he could have gone back to Tesla and been recloned. Furthermore, he knew nothing of Tesla until he saw Tesla's dangerous exhibition. As stated by another poster on this board: the spread of information in the time period of the movie makes it improbable that he knew of Tesla before Tesla came to England.
The nature of the Pledge/Turn/Prestige is that an ordinary thing does something extraordinary. The trick, as stated in the movie, is seemingly obvious once revealed. It conforms with the film's themes that the secret behind Borden's Transported Man would be extremely simple (a twin).
If Borden had cloned himself, he would have immediately seen the trick to Angier's "New Transported Man."
spicspic's post supports that Borden had a twin by explaining that twin Bordens make the movie more powerful (I edited it a little):
If The Prestige is just a clone movie it went a LONG way to deliver ONE sci-fi twist.
If the Bordens are clones:
1) Borden clones himself.
2) Borden tells Angier where to go to discover the secret.
3) Angier does the SAME THING.
If the Bordens are twins:
1) The movie has been holding out on us since the begining, which is exactly the kind of thing a twist laden movie would do.
2) The Bordens' intended misdirection in sending Angier to Tesla comes back to haunt them.
3) Angier's abuse of the clone technology is tragic and ironic because Borden's Transported Man was exactly what Cutter told him it was: a double. Borden could cope with sharing the applause with his twin; Angier could not cope with sharing the applause with anyone.
2. Did Angier kill himself every night?
Yes. Angier stepped into the electricity every night knowing that he would die by falling through the floor into the water and that his clone would live on (created in the wooden box). Proof: the trap door under the electricity is shown opening, the many dead Angiers are shown in their boxes at the end of the movie. The proof of this is also in what it adds to the story: Angier is punishing himself every night for his wife's death; he has decided to "get his hands dirty" because he kills himself every night. Angier believes that drowning is a humane/painless way to die because of what Cutter told him at his wife's funeral. Would Angier have continued his trick with the knowledge that drowning was anguish? In the film, he doesn't clone himself again after Cutter tells him the pain of drowning, but he has finished his run at the theatre so he has no reason to.
3. What is the difference between the Borden twins?
One twin is sensible and one is rash. The rash twin ties the more complicated knot and continues to meddle with Angier's tricks. The rash twin also is the one that sleeps with Olivia and spurs Sarah to hang herself because he tells her it is a day that he doesn't love her. The rash twin is the one hanged in the end (he is caught at the scene of Angier's "murder"). The sensible twin lives on with his daughter.
4. Why does Borden say "I don't know" each time Angier asks which knot he tied?
The rash twin ties the knot. The first time Angier asks Borden he is asking the sensible twin. The sensible twin actually doesn't know. Borden continues to answer "I don't know" because it would be suspect for him to change his answer; both twins most likely know what knot was tied, but they must stick with their first answer.
5. Are the journals real or fake?
Both journals are fake. The cleverness of the characters hints that neither would be dumb enough to keep a journal containing all his secrets. Angier continually copies Borden; his journal follows the trend after he is frustrated by Borden's faked journal.
6. Why does Borden send Angier to Tesla?
Borden gets the electricity from Tesla to 'spice' up his act. It is possible that he also got the electricity to give further proof to Angier that Tesla is the answer (it also confuses the audience, which seems to have been a goal of Nolan with the movie: cinematic sleight of hand). Borden is putting Angier off of his trail. Tesla plays along because he receives a huge amount of funding from Angier for his work.
7. Where does Angier get all his money?
Angier is in fact Lord Codlow for the entire film. Early in the film he explains to his wife that he changed his name so as not to shame his family with his magic tricks.
Thanks for sharing your view!Van i know who is this?
Anyway some of my responses:
1.The rash twin is the one hanged in the end (he is caught at the scene of Angier's "murder"). The sensible twin lives on with his daughter.
How do we know for sure that the rash twin is caught at the scene of Angier's 'murder'? Don't forget that he tried saving Angier, which shows that he is not that evil afterall. Could we not argue that Borden might be the one who was hanged in the end?
2.Borden gets the electricity from Tesla to 'spice' up his act. It is possible that he also got the electricity to give further proof to Angier that Tesla is the answer.
It can also be said that Olivia might be the one who taught Borden how to 'spice' up his act. When she first met Borden, she told Borden that she can help him in attacting the audience. This contributes towards Angier believing Tesla is the key of this whole performance.
1. Definitely a twin brother. The goldfish trick already hinted at the sacrifice a magician needs to make in order to perfect the trick. Something Borden could emphatise with, as the Borden twins had to sacrifice their lives in leading one life, to further their trick. And don't forget the cryptic prophecy, when Borden did the bird trick, and the little boy asked where's his brother.
2. I am still a bit stumped on the Cutter one. Might have to watch it on DVD. Cutter might have known about the twins from the start, since he was so sure about Borden's trick using a lookalike. Did he say something about it being the simplest explanation? Cutter continued to testify against Borden because he really thought that Borden had killed Angier maybe? It was only much later when Cutter discovers Lord Caldlow and when Cutter discovers the grim secret of Angier killing his clones, does Cutter walk away.
3. Yup I agree that it could be that one twin tied the Langford know and the other the simpler knot.
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