The Prestige: Life Is an Illusion

Shawn Reber

Professor Bartone

Media Criticism

Essay # 1 Narrative and Semiotics on The Prestige

The Prestige: Life is an illusion

The film The Prestige is the story about trickery and illusions . We learn about the idea of illusions and how they can transcend the magicians stage and turn to ordinary life. "Are you watching closely? This is the opening line of the film and for good reason, we are not sure what we are watching in the film is real or if it’s an illusion. The film touches upon such other issues such as revenge, ego, jealousy, and betrayal. But I think one of the more important issues the film raises is the idea of what an illusion is.

We see our first look at both our main characters when they are both backstage after performing a trick. Cutter (played by Michael Caine) scolds Borden (Christian Bale) for tying a different type of know than he’s supposed to. We can learn from this scene that Angier (Hugh Jackman) thinks he’s better than Borden, due to his large ego.

The problem with their magic is that their lives are completely entangled with these illusions both literary and real illusions. Both characters try to one up each other by creating grand illusions to fool there audiences. The problem is that their personal lives are illusions in their own right. We learn at the end of the film that Bordens life was an illusion. Borden had a twin Fallon and fooled everyone. He fooled his wife, because when they were having arguments she wasn’t having the arguments with Borden, she was having arguments with Fallon. This is the same thing that happened to his love interest Olivia. He also fooled Angier into thinking that the “transported man trick” was more elaborate than it was. Borden’s life on and off stage was a complete illusion, he was a method actor, and a grand illusionist.

Algiers life on and off stage was also an illusion. Algier was an excellent showman and knew how to awe his audiences with his magic. Like Borden Algier also shared a second identity, he shared his identity with a man named Lord Coldrow. This was an illusion he created, because no one knew what Lord Coldrow looked like. Algier also had the illusion of his magic trick which