The Prestige Ending Finally Explained - Are You Watching Closely?
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- #Prestigeexplained #unreliablenarrator
I have spent alot of time with Christopher Nolan's The Prestige and by the end of this film essay I will unlock the secret that he hid in his movie. The use of the unreliable narrator lends to a more complex viewing of the movie. Are you watching closely?
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John Cutter, an ingenieur who designs magic tricks, mentors two young magicians, Angiers (an upper class magic enthusiast) and Borden (a working class shill). In one of their first performances, Borden ties a knot that is too difficult for Angiers wife to escape from, killing her in the process. This enrages Angiers and their rivalry begins.
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After launching separate careers, Angiers sees Borden perform “The greatest magic trick he’s ever seen” and becomes obsessed with learning the secret. We know that Borden has a twin who acts as his double. When Angiers is unable to figure it out, he hires a double to perform his own version which is more successful but unsatisfying for Angiers as he ends up under the stage while Root receives all the applause.
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Angiers assigns his assistant and love interest to spy on Borden to find out his secret. This plan backfires as she helps Borden sabotage Angiers act and she falls in love with Borden in the process. Before saying goodbye to Angiers, she does one last thing for him by giving him Borden’s encoded diary. Angiers can’t read the diary without the keyword so he plots to kidnap Fallon, Borden’s ingeniuer in disguise, played by his twin brother. He holds Fallon at ransom for the keyword which Borden reluctantly gives.
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When Angiers discovers the word is Tesla he knows he has to go to America to see him. He believes that Borden had a machine built by Tesla and he wants one built for himself. Tesla reluctantly agrees to build such a machine but it proves more difficult than he thought. As Angiers decodes Borden’s diary he discovers that it was a red herring given to him to get him out of London. He realizes that Tesla never made a machine for Borden. Nevertheless, when he confronts Tesla about this, Tesla agrees to the claim but shows him the results of what he has been working on. The machine does not transport but duplicates it’s subject. Tesla is driven away from Colorado by his rival Edison, but not before Tesla leaves the machine for Angiers with a warning to not use it. Destroy it before it ruins him.
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Meanwhile back in London, Borden’s wife Sarah is driven mad by Borden’s seemingly duplicitous personality and she suspects he is having an affair with Olivia. We know that Borden #1 is in love with Sarah and Borden #2 is in love with Olivia. Sarah commits suicide as a result.
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Angiers returns to London and recruits Cutter to set up a new show called The New Transported Man. The nature of the trick being that Angier would clone himself. One clone would end up in the water tank below stage and one would end up in the balcony as the Prestige. We learn The purpose of the show is to frame Borden for Angiers. During a performance, Borden #2 sneaks backstage and down into the pit where he witnesses Angiers fall into a water tank and drowns. Cutter discovers Borden standing there and turns him over to police where he is eventually found guilty of Angiers murder and sentenced to be hanged.
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While serving time in prison, Borden #2 is visited by a Lord Caldlow’s lawyer who offers to care for Borden’s daughter in exchange for Borden’s tricks. After first viewing we know that Caldlow is Angiers who was jealously driven by Borden’s seemingly happy family life and wants to care for Borden’s little girl himself.
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When Cutter realizes that Angiers is still alive and living as Caldlow, caring for Borden’s girl after framing Borden for his “murder”, he agrees to help Angiers dispose of the machine with the purpose of getting his revenge.
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No buy interesting take.
I like how Tesla is described as a wizard. A wizard can do what magicians only pretend to do. Bad ass
Nolan gave the audience the answer with the little boy crying about the bird.
Yes. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood does a similar move.
Damn! I didn't think so
Yup. You have to watch it twice to understand that part
No, that was just another misdirection for the audience because now everybody thinks that Borden and Fallon are twins/brothers when Fallon is actually Bordens clone.
@@headassvegan If they were clones, why would they have vey distinct, subtle personality differences?
If all cutter wants is wealth and he had telsas cloning machine. Why can't he clone wealth and get satisfied.
😂point
IKR I would just find a bar of gold and clone the shit out of it lol.
That's what happened in the book. Just watched The Dom's review, and wanted to see other takes.
Did you just hit a blunt?
Good ideas till you realize you can’t clone money bc the serial numbers would be the same making them fake
The Borden's were never clones. If you remember Tesla's line in the movie "it's all your hats" would mean the clones would be an exact same of one another. Borden twins on the other hand was very different in terms of who they were. If you watch it twice you can see small differences that make them different to one another.
The Borden twin were not clone, They were not wealthy and could not have afford to pay Tesla for such a device. See ruclips.net/video/EDO-tjGhF1Q/видео.html. Better more realistic break down of the movie. Alfred (twin 1) was just trying to get rid of rival and send him on a wild goose chase.
@@waynevo2979 he didn’t have to pay, cutter offered him to use it
A copy is never as good as the original.
If the clone was exactly the same as the original, Danton would not have cared if he was the one who died because every clone would be exactly the same as him.
Borden said when asked what knot he tied, "I keep asking _myself_ that question.
Borden never confirmed he had a twin, Danton assumed it to be true.
A Londoner working onstage in London could easily come across someone who knew him growing up and knew he had a twin. He never came across such a person because he wasn't a twin.
Danton says about the door trick, "It's the _same_ man.
The hats at the end imply that Borden is a clone.
Sarah would have noticed physical differences between the two Bordens if they were twins.
The clone was framed and sent to his death because nobody cares about the man in the box.
@@mypillowguy445 though I never considered this, it makes sense. Thus Borden only giving Tesla's name, not saying the real secret - Tesla made him a machine too, but since he figured its real danger, Borden destroyed it and brainwashed his clone and turned him into his "twin", and their plan went on until the cloned one messed up when accidentally killed Angier's wife . The plot thickens...
your theory of sacrificing a clone, defines the concept of dedication to craftmanship which is basically the point of the entire movie.
Except Angier's sacrifice is the "easy" way, or perhaps more apt to say quick way, out of the situation, though more extreme for sure. He could have quit using the clone machine after the first test, as he would have a perfect clone to perform the act with (exactly how the borden bros are doing it). He can't do that because he knows his own nature though. He can't stand being the man under the stage, as he was with Root (body double). Since they are exact clones the other self won't accept it long term either, so one of them must die to keep the act going and feed into Angier's need to be the Prestige each time.
@@MrVicbryant couldn't agree more, I honestly don't remember y I commented that 😂, maybe if I watch the video again I'll remember.
Having seen The Prestige well over a dozen times: Lord Caldlow is the *most* overlooked detail of this film. The other is why didn’t he make 1 clone and do the trick?
This video explains this. Well done, Sir.
I feel like your reaching hard. Like some people said cutters surprise was too shocked when he found out angier was still alive. And your “the 1st bolden was mad and wanted to kill the second one is wrong due to his reaction to his brother about to hang. He is sad and understands that he is with out his secret (brother now).
I believe the one and only point of the movie is clear as day at the end. It was also repeated a few times in the movie. Obsession leads to your destruction. The twin brother could have left angier alone and keep his trick but his obsession to figure out it lead to the set up. And we see how angier spiraled out of control due to HIS obsession with the original transporting man trick
Very original, clever theory - but I am not convinced. There is definitely a another hidden layer with the ending, but I don't think this is it. Cutter was too sincere in his motivations. Plus if all Tesla/Cutter/everyone else wanted to do was to get rich - all.they had to do was place a 100 gold bars in the machine and turn it on a couple hundred times. Remember the machine duplicated inanimate objects as well. So once Cutter got access to the machine seems like he could become an instant millionaire and that is without tricking, kidnapping and helping people go down for crimes they didn't commit.
the hidden layer huh, I keep thinking this, me thinks its the dealers hand lol.
but seriously, do we really think that Tesla's device is a simple duplication machine? lolol
Something tells me there are multiple timelines and/or some temporal loop like forced fate shenanigans going on here.
Thanks a lot for the insights. I watched the film for the first time today, after it having been mentioned in the current Rick + Morty Episode. Most of the things mentionend seem possible to me. However the way I understand the cloning machine, afterwards we can't really talk about an original and a copy. We simply have two dudes who are continuations of the one dude who went in the machine. I think Angier's confused look isn't a childlike state or coming up to speed, he's just confused that he was tranported and sees what he must assume to be a copy in his place. He sees the other guy going for the gun, but doesn't say "Don't shoot!" or "Let's talk this out." or things to that effect. Instead he says "No, wait, I'm the " and I presume he meant to say "original."
Ur a clever guy. I never thought he was gonna say he was the original
You have to watch the prestige after i t was mentioned in rick and morty thats sad
@@LORD-kg4sl I'm terribly sorry for having made you feel sad. Is there anything I can do to help you feel less sad?
@@ansgarhamer3731 😣
The clones aren’t real. It’s all a delusion to trick Christian Bales character. This invariably tricks the audience too. That’s the prestige. Nolan makes us believe clones can be real. The same way Bale believed it. Tesla’s machine didn’t work, Jackman only used the idea to trick Bale.
I dont think borden #1 was revenging on #2.
From the last conversation of borden and angier, #1 said the life of borden was enough for the brothers, but not enough for sarah and olivia. I guess he was more of regret than hatred to #2
Borden 1 is Science. Borden 2 is Religion (sacrificed). Angier is Aristocracy. Cutter is the Aristocratic Court. They are also named after the alphabet (A,B,C) to distinguish their rank of power in the game, or maybe just their hierarchical position.
Now you are looking for Virgil's orange trick. But you won't find it, because, of course, you are not really looking. You don't want to work it out. You want to be 'cured'.
Christopher Nolan is the best I've seen director hands down.
"The audience knows the truth. The world is solid all the way through." Why would a man who has a magic cloning machine say this? And why would he not instantly suspect that Borden had cloned himself using the machine to perform the trick? Also Cutter's reaction to seeing Angier still alive was utter revulsion. He seemed genuinely shocked and perturbed by the revelation. Borden and Cutter need not be in cahoots for the ending to make sense. They are both there at Angier's warehouse the night it burns down.
e mc hmmm I’m curious what is then your interpretation
Borden dropped the ball when he was hung, and Borden 2 picked it up.
Why would Angier say this? Because the first time we watch this movie, we, the audience, are not watching closely. We believe that Tesla really made the machine work. We believe this, despite relying completely on the word of only a single magician. Look at Cutter when he checks Angier's body. Is he looking closely? No, he sees it for a second and then walks away. He is not looking closely. It could have been Root or another double. And the body in the water? Are you looking closely? A body that's been dead underwater for weeks (100 shows = 140 days. Plus however long it took for the court to move toward the death penalty. The body should have been bloated and decomposing.) There never was a cloning machine. The bodies are just wax sculptures. It's just Angier taking once again Borden's magic trick and improving on it as the better showman he is.
Alfred's ending is similar to that of inception and memento. It's the moment where he doesn't care anymore. Doesn't care about whether the top falls down, doesn't care about finding the real john g, doesn't care about looking where he is when Angier tries to misdirect him when he says "look!".
Hmm. All really good counter points. That’s what I love about this movie. You can ponder and ponder and ponder but it’s STILL leaving us all scratching our heads over the details all these years later.
@@grubbytron He literally threw the ball at him before he was hanged, what movie were you watching?
Borden didn't tie an impossible knot. The (knot tying Borden) wasn't aware that the knot he tied would swell in the water. The other Borden was aware because he was the one warned of it in the beginning of the film.
THANK YOU! this had always bothered me: the Bordens are too meticulous to tie the wrong knot -- which would suggest that they killed Angier's wife on purpose.
But your explanation makes perfect sense: When the Bordens are trading costumes and debriefing each other... the one twin who was told the information (about the knot swelling) had clearly absorbed the knowledge -- but forgot to transmit it.
Brilliant.
Well fuck! When I first saw this film I wasn't thinking about it on this level and haven't really gone back to it. But everyone's role and Cutter's plan do make sense. Except I do believe it was the guy's real twin. Sacrifice was a big theme in the movie. From the part where they were watching the old magician who appeared to be crippled or something and Borden was like so amazed by his dedication and Angier was like idiot. And then how desperate he was to save Fallon and their goodbyes. He was his brother, not a clone.
here's what it is, Angier is all about the fame but Borden is about the secrets, and will do anything to keep it and even die for it. all for a good magic trick.
it really is amazing to see how borden tells his daughter she will see him again soon, setting up fallons taking off of the make up and being with his daughter as borden, so from the daughters perspective borden never misses a beat
this was genius and such an amazing analysis that just added that extra answer i so desperately needed after watching this film omg
I have another theory. Angiers duplicated himself one more time after retirement and kept his twin hidden. After becoming Cauldwell, watching Borden hang, and discovering the secret of his trick, Cutter discovered the identity of Cauldwell and became his accomplice, helping to lure Borden’s twin below stage knowing he would be after revenge, to kill Angier’s last duplicate who would sacrifice himself to make Borden think he had succeeded. Feeling vindicated, Borden would then vanish into obscurity, making Angiers the winner, the better magician, the feud would be over. Borden was his last audience. Angiers was insistent on Borden seeing the 99 bodies of himself, he wanted to feel that wonder from Borden when he saw how Angiers had made his trick work. Cauldwell, now rich, could live his life free. He bought a manor, changed his name to Wayne, married, and had a son he called Bruce. Cutter stayed with the family as their butler and called himself Alfred. Batman Begins was the sequel to The Prestige.
OK maybe not the last part, but who knows, or keeping Cutter as an accomplice - I think Angiers fooled him too and never saw him again. But I think Angiers lived on as his last duplicate, rich and secure in the knowledge his trick could never be bettered. He had won.
Bird 1 is crushed and Bird 2 appears and Bird 1: audience claps.
Angiers x is drowned and Angiers x+1 appears and appears as Angiers x: whole concert hall claps. Repeat x 60.
Borden 1 is hung and Borden 2 appears as Borden 1: Daughter claps.
This is really thought out, yes, but I feel like this is very very contrived and relies a lot on assumptions
+Nick Weller Thank you for your comment! The very nature of a Christopher Nolan movie is that the ambiguity leads to the need to make assumptions in order to make sense of the movie. I feel I have provided plenty of evidence to explain the assumptions I have made. If you have your own theories about what the movie means I would love to hear them. There are no right or wrong answers to such an ambiguous plot.
@Phantom Alpha I feel as though you misunderstand what I'm calling contrived. I love the movie, the movie is genius, I'm saying that most alternate theories on the ending are very contrived and rely too much on assumptions that were not given by the film.
Nick Weller Hey Nick, some of these assumptions actually make sense. If the Bordens really are natural twins, and NOT as a result of being cloned in Tesla's machine, then how come their secret doesn't get out, considering they live and perform in London, with cockney accents that suggest they were born/raised there? Surely people would know the Borden family, assuming that's their real name?
@@funhousefilmreviews9767 thats what i think this movie is about and with nolan, that there is no secrets once its all revealed. its like the anti-plot twists of plot twists. yes there are plot twists in the movie, but the movie always reveals them and lays them out and in the end, there isnt anything left more to find. its like a giant magic trick of cinema, we see the trick, its up to us if we accept the obvious meaning or if we try to keep looking for more, the exact same way angier tries to find more in bordens trick, despite cutter knowing its a double. angier while dying even gets mad at himself because cutter knew and angier thought it was too simple, he looked for a more complex meaning.
well, adding a machine that really does teleport (with a side effect of making a copy) it really is that simple, nothing more to find or look into unless we choose not to accept the truth and look for more where there isnt actually more.
W@@mikespearwood3914 Well, Angier is using a fake name, why can't Borden? For all we know, one of the brothers could have faked his own death early in life and adopted a new persona. Particularly the one who is alway crabby and has an obvious chip on his shoulder.
1.Is Alfred Borden has a clone?
-No he doesn't. He has a identical twin named Freddy Borden
2. Why do Alfred and Freddy share 1 life?
-sacrifice. To make the trick of transported man success, audience should never knows that there are 2 persons. So they share 1 life for 2 persons for the whole life.
3. Why do Borden write "tesla" as a key?
-key for diary, not for the tricks. The diary is full of machine drawing. Borden has fake electric machine, but not Tesla's. It just for dramatic entertainment only.
4. What does the quote "are you watching closely" means?
-Borden see there are a lot of glass boxes. But he doesn't pay attention to the clone body inside it.
5. Is Angier still alive?
-in the end we just see Angier drowning with open eyes. It seems dead.
I think he mentioned they're are twins and not clones! We know they're identical twins
Your idea that Cutter is manipulating the whole thing seems correct. But you need to revise the theory to take into account that Tesla's machine doesn't work to produce duplicates. It just throws a lot of sparks. Unless you want to be fooled. The machine doesn't work.
I loved this video, now that I’ve seen you explain one of the Bourdan twins being a clone, I don’t know how I never thought of that possibility.
Also, I think there was one more tandem pretending to be different people as well. I think David Bowie who plays Tesla is actually not Tesla, yet a man hired to play him just as Angiers does. I believe Tesla was the gentleman who played his assistant/ handler. He’s the one always explaining the science and doing most of the talking, while the other gentleman is simply just acting as if he is Tesla.
But who the heck knows with this movie, this one I always felt I could be wrong about what I thought of it, and probably was.
Cutter was really fed up with Angier and Borden tearing each other apart. That's why for example he tells Angier than drowning feels like agony. And I don't think that he was emplyoing Angier and a set of twins.
Isn’t the simpler reason Borden says Tesla is the key to the truck beyond sending him on an intentional wild goose chase (which he makes explicit in the diary) if there need be one is that Tesla invented the ‘alternating current’ which was superior to Edison’s ‘direct current’ which can be seen as a metaphor for Borden’s and Angier’s different approaches to magic
To add more on top of this, Tesla played by David Bowie is most likely not Tesla but an actor to hide the real Tesla in plain sight; his servant played by Andy Serkis. Isn't it odd that he shows Angia all the technology and writes the operation for the machine, and not our assumed Tesla. Interesting fun fact, Tesla owned a black cat, but in the film, we're lead to believe its the servant's cat.
I think you're on to something but I'm not convinced it's exactly like you described it
He did if he forgot only one of the twins could tie knots right and the woman was trying to get out of the wrong knot.
A good take, but unless I missed something (which is possible) Cutter didn't know Angier and Caldlow where the same person.
If we're assuming that he knew what Teslas machine did then:
1) the reveal Angier was alive wouldn't be a shock to him
Or
2) it wouldn't really be scamming him out of money if the machine worked because, well... it works. A working machine is what he paid for and got - plus, the money brought in from the shows would cover the cost.
Though I am with you on the twins being a clone. It's said he never built one for Borden... doesn't say he didn't build one for Fallon.
Right, I was wondering why he said this too, cutter clearly didn’t know . I think the movies is really talking about “obsessing” over something and how it consumes you. Angier clearly spirals due to his obsession over the trick the twins do. And the twin brother is ultimately done in by angier “set up” be cause he became obsessed with Angiers trick. I felt like this was a simple point after watching the movie
Acknowledge the fact Borden #2 is Tesla copy for Borden. Borden took his gift and left. Other Magician dealt his dark Karma over 100 times. It caught him up in the end. Borden is a copy
This is deep. My friend and I did some deep analytics on this movie but your insight takes it to another level.
MadeByGod1973 thank you very much! That means a lot to me. Stay tuned for a philosophical discussion of Netflix’s new movie I Am Mother. The topic will be about how Plato’s allegory of the cave opens up the plot in an insightful way. Very deep dive.
plot twist: borden kill the clone angier in the end
@@jonathankuminga4328 My friend and I have pondered this theory as well. Especially when he sees the water tanks in the end and they show one in the tank up close.
@@MadeByGod1973 Wait so angier is still alive?
I notice that they were going back and forth the entire movie. So it would make sense that either the original Angier is still alive or a clone is.
@@user-qg4fk9yb1h If you look closely, there is an air bubble that floats up by Angier's face. I believe that everyone he drowned, he got better and better at holding his breath. When he was found by Borden and was taken out the cage, he may have gotten so good at holding his breath that he even fooled Cutter when he viewed him in the coroner table.
The 2 Bordens are twins, not clones. They have different personalities. Borden 1 is arrogant regarding the knots, leading to Julia’s death. However it is Borden 2 who goes to funeral to offer condolences. He genuinely doesn’t know which knot his brother tied, although he has his suspicions.
There’s nothing that really supports the video’s theory about Cutter. He may think/know that “Angier” is wealthy, but has no reason to believe he has the kind of fortune held by Lord Caldlow.
There’s plenty of scope for interpretation though. The movie is ambiguous as to whether Cutter knows Borden’s secret. I’m inclined to think not - he tells Angier that Borden uses a double in his trick, but then he also assists Angier abduct Fallon in order to extort Borden for the keyword to his journal. However, at the end he seems unsurprised when Borden arrives at the theatre to kill Angier and they even share a nod of acknowledgement. There may have been some collusion between them off screen prior to this.
Anyway, great film.
Cutter turns on Angier because he has shown to have a conscious, he may push the boundary a bit here and there (getting your hands dirty) but he isn't happy about burying the brother as an example. In the end he turns on Angier for pinning a "fake" murder charge and death sentence on Borden while basically attempting to use the daughter as a pawn and final insult in the feud. This is just a step too far for Cutter and he ends up siding with the remaining Borden brother once he discovers the truth of their secret. I agree with the whole wealth stealing plot not really being supported with anything in the movie.
This is a just a theory that adds nothing to the movie. Not an explanation at all.
Nice try but that theory doesnt work bordon 1 was not framing hia brother their interaction when hes about to b hung shows this in storytelling he wouldnt have had that much emotion if he was setting him up plus they took jess from fallon he didnt give her away
Just because he set him up doesn't mean he Cant have remorse
I’m not sure about Tesla but I’m pretty confident Bowie was a real wizard
The scariest thing about this film is a duality . The whole point of the film is it rarely makes a moral point but asks which person is worse? Angier is prepared to kill himself every night he does the trick ultimately for the pursuit of fame and oneupmanship and revenge. The Bordens' obsession with being great magicians ultimately kills 1 of them AND results in the deaths of 2 others. The key to the film is the lengths that the Chinese magician is willing to go to succeed in his trick. Angier wants The trick Bordensdo years of hard work. Ultimately Angier kills himself releatedly showing he's as dedicated if insane!
2 questions. How did angier know borden would go down under the stage to be framed during the literal show? Also didnt angier 1 die aftwr the 1st cloning? Since he said "no wait, im the-" hinting that he was the original angier?
That is what I thought, if the first angier died then a copy kept on going with the shows, and I assume that the copy had the same conscience. Borden 2 went down and saw the copy saying help so that means that when someone enters the machine they are transported to another place and the copy is the one who goes down; that explains the part where the “original” wants to say “wait I’m the original”. So in conclusion the “original” died and a copy kept on going with the shows and he was the one who got shot. Honestly I still cannot understand all this but well.
They both THINK they're original they both have the same memories up to that moment
@@jacklindsey2428 agreed. Angier still had that limp. The clones thought they were the original.
@@daveinji1330 of course though right makes you think about morality and perception and shit
@@brunoortellado6631 yes but I don't think that is how the machine always worked. Tesla warned that "these machines don't always work like we think".Also, the last Angier mentions having courage stepping under the machine not knowing if he would get drowned or transported. I believe that some shows, the man standing under the machine was transported. Sometimes he was drowned. It was never consistent.
The air bubbles at the end of the movie from one of the “clones” makes me confident that Angier is alive.
Yes!!! I tought i was the only one who caught that! Consciousness transfer plus in the beginning of the film, Angier after the death of his wife was training himself to hold his breath underwater by dunking his head in the sink.
@@johnnythunders78 👏👏👏 Right on the money! I guess most people don’t see it because they want to be fooled?
@@johnnythunders78 I thought he was just trying to commit suicide but now that you mention this I believe you're on to something.
@@johnnythunders78 Also, you can barely see that he was looking at Borden at the end.
These are great reviews. I'm sorry your channel didn't take off.
Dude, no.
You are skeptical about all the unreliable narrator stuff, yet you just assume that the 'magical machine' is real and works?
If there's a hidden extra layer to this film, it's watching it again, and assuming that the machine is just BS set dressing for Angiers' trick.
In a Michael Caine accent: Your theory has gone off the bloody rails!
Just watched this film for the 2nd time. I think the real Jackman died after the first cloning, which is why he knew about the gun without seeing it... (yeah, maybe the clone has the exact memories up to that point but I doubt it) Interesting theories on this video, (especially the one about the brothers being clones) but unless I'm missing something I don't get why Cutter went to all that trouble if he wasn't getting anything from it?
Cutter partnered with Borden #1 to steal Angiers fortune. They received the fortune from Borden’s daughter when she was adopted by Angiers and inherited it upon Angiers’ death.
No clue what makes Funhouse believe that Cutter wanted Angier's money as that is just out of left field and nothing directly points to such in the film. Cutter was shown as a rather averagely tempered person. He showed discomfort with how far things were going when they kidnapped and buried the one brother as ransom for information and was further troubled when he found out Angier was somehow alive following the murder trial and pinning it on Borden. I'd say the tipping point was Angier taking the daughter as a final insult in the feud. Cutter couldn't accept using a child as a pawn and either made contact or was contacted by the remaining Borden brother, setting up the ending of the movie.
Great explanation..superb insights pal
Thank you very much!
@@funhousefilmreviews9767 what u up to nowadays pal
Working on Game of Thrones: The Musical. Should be pretty funny. Coming out in a couple days. Subscribe to stay up to date with future content! bit.ly/2FknHiC
Thanks for asking
Now I can watch it for the third time. Really cool movie.
Andy Serkis was Tesla NOT bowie....Andy remarks the black cat was his (its the scene when the cat is in his wooden cage).....Tesla had a black cat in real life. Also Andy was the one demonstrating in Colorado and pulling the levers on the film.....never bowie. He mentions calibrations, etc.....bowie is never scene operating the machine.
plot twist: borden kill the clone angier in the end
These types of analysis makes it fun to rewatch a movie. Amazing video. Thank you.
But are the Nolan brothers clones? 🤨
Honestly loved this video you are a talented gay keep it up bro
Hmm... something seems....off here. Maybe the talented "gay" part. Made my afternoon, thank you 🤣
@@AyrfloGaming he meant guy
Misleading.. pointless explanation
Why does Angier beg to be let out of the water case as if he were fooled to get into it? Isn’t he aware of how the trick works?
So I think the machine is temperamental. Sometimes, the man using the machine gets transported and replaced with a clone in his original spot. Sometimes, the man using the machine stays still while another duplicate is transported elsewhere. So in the scene you are describing, I think the man using the machine expects to be transported elsewhere but instead stays still and is dumped into the tank left to drown which was intended for his newly made clone. The clone that survives knows the tank was put there for him. Only knowing everything about the Angier prior to being drowned to death. Hence, every future clone has no idea what it is like to drown, which he assumes is not that bad because Cutter told him so. So he continues the trick not 'knowing whether he would be the man in the tank or the prestige".
@@diegomonge1704 whoah interesting 👍🏽
Hadn’t thought of that possibility.
All for the love of the crowd
@@socratese5 yes just a theory. He also could have just been acting to make it look like he was trying to escape in case anyone else came down with Borden to make himself look like the victim. The things you see in this movie can have so many different explanations. it is some film.
@@diegomonge1704 Yeah Nolan seems to really like to leave lots of clues and hidden messages in his movies
After everytime I watched nolan's film I watch the explanation too 🥺
Thanks for watching! Did this video help you understand the movie?
@@funhousefilmreviews9767 Yes thank you anyway but decided to watch the movie again this time I'll watch closely
Whoa! I'm blown away!
Why did bordan write Tesla in angiers note ?? Did he knew and why did he do to help him or what
He wrote it to wind Angiers' up, pure and simple. Borden knows Angiers well enough to be fairly sure he'd run off to Colorado in search of Tesla and thus stay out of Borden's life for a while, as well as waste his money on a fool's errand. Of course whether you actually believe Angiers' story once he gets to Colorada and discovers Borden tricked him is another thing. Never forget that both men are trying to decieve the other through their diaries, so what they state in the diaries (yes, even when Angiers states he met Tesla and had a machine built by him) cannot be trusted.
Can't get on board with your theory, as Cutter seemingly gets nothing, it's Angier, not Angiers, there is no such word as "alot," The twins had first names, not "Borden 1" and "Borden 2," and, alas "sub-sequent."
There is not one criticism in this comment that is even remotely valid. It was a valiant effort though.
@@funhousefilmreviews9767 Well, then I shall spell it out for you: I can't give any credence to your theories, when you are obviously quite stupid on so many fronts. Like, did you even watch the movie? Valid enough?
Now, I am in no way trying to be facetious; what needs to be explained about this movie? IMO, it was cut & dry. 🤔
Cool theory, but it's a stretch. There's literally nothing in the film to directly support this, Cutter has no scenes where he's shown to scheme or would have access to Angier's money.
Just scenes that seem a bit coincidental, but that's the pitfalls of making any story, some stuff may feel a bit forced to keep the plot moving
What I see here is the Tarot. The magican is the highest card. - it's a high stakes game. And the game of Power is about the Art of Illusion. - the movie shows the hardship of being at the top of the Pyramid. Having to pretend all the time.
you are overthinking
no. you are underthinking.
17:42 because tesla assistant admitted he never built a machine for borden
Maybe the assistant lied. Or did not know that maybe Borden made a deal with Tesla to get just one clone. Maybe my mind is shot to pieces trying to understand n explain it all to myself....
Hmmmm....... 😲😄
just watched the movie
Did you like it?
One of my favorite movies. Actor Christian Bale
Bordens are tight. No indication either brother would sabotage the other. I Don’t buy your interesting theory.
Upon first viewing, I thought that 'Borden 1' was just a really good double and they were sharing a life. I thought that the original Borden had died in the end, and Angier saying “A twin??” was to show his cluelessness, and Borden’s commitment to his act (which he mentioned alot). I saw Borden as the main character, and mostly ignored Cutter. Borden 2 was angrier, but he was more active in the Borden’s life; he was smart an irrational. Borden 1 mostly appeared as Fallon so I assumed that he was the secondary Borden, which made his attempt to sacrifice ‘Fallon’ (Borden 2) completely confusing. What I mean is, Borden 1 felt secondary, which made it hard to believe that he was the original.
It would be impossible to only watch this movie once.
The theory that Borden 2 is a result of Tesla’s machine is beyond stupid. He never went to Tesla. They have to be twins.
@@Dee-yd4vw I agree, however, the narrators were constantly missleading the audience. Upon my first watching I had to watch some scenes twice just to grasp what was really going on. However, I do believe he did went to Tesla. The reason I say this is because when Borden was doing the closet trick there was a similar device in the middle with lightning. Which it could be assume he was clonning himself. Another example is when he was at the Tesla convention/presentation, what was he doing there?
Also, there was a dialogue between Borden and Olivia or his wife (I don't remember who) where she said "he could be many places at once".
Another hint could be the lightbulbs which would a representation of what was really going on.
The whole Scenario that the team wanted his money is possible, but I don't buy it. Borden was already doing good for himself with his show.
This movie really left me with a lot of questions, such as:
Is Angier still alive or at least a clone of him?
Why where cutter and Borden working together?
Who was the antagonist here?
@@user-qg4fk9yb1h its been a while so i cant answer about angier, but i think cutter is sort of the game master and he’s messing with their lives. i think he worked with borden simply because borden payed. and as for the antagonist, i think the antagonist is borden and angier’s obsession with their craft.
@@user-qg4fk9yb1hand if tesla wanted money he could have duplicated as much gold as he wanted without injuring anyone.
I need an explanation for this explanation.. who the fuck is "root"????
I went ti Imdb, went through the cast but found no such character.
The double. He’s literally played by Hugh jackman.
Why does everyone who does analysis of this film put an S and the end of Angier?
I really think Borden 2 is a clone. Otherwise, if havving 2 Bordens was the normal state, they would have use Tesla's machine to bring back a second Borden
But each borden would love Sarah and
@@ittachiuchiha2470 threesome
Excellent observations! I agree.
If Borden was a clone, then Tesla already knew how to make the machine. But how a working class man in England was able to afford such a thing is too mad to comprehend.
I'm not buying that Borden was a clone because they were both completely different people personality wise. Say you cloned yourself exactly. Your clone is going to have your personaility, experiences, and memories and think how you think. It would have to take years and years of experiences before you and your clone start becoming two different people.
The only way they could become someone else is if they are cloned but dont retain memories and experiences and in in the movie, it seems that the duplicate is a 1:1 replica.
Another reason I don't think Borden was a clone is that there was that scene where Angier and he were looking at the Chinese man and Borden talking and mesmerizing about the fact that the Chinese guy dedicated his entire life of faking crippleness to accomplish a magic trick which mirrors the Borden's dedication to retaining a single identity for probably their whole lives (if they arent clones) to perform the transporting man. If one of the Borden's was a clone, then the weight of this scene means less. This scene to me implied that the Bordens dedicated at least years of hiding their identities for the sake of doing a magic trick.
You are completely missing the point...the machine doesn't work. It was a scam. You want to be fooled!
Bro U really over thinking this
It doesn't work to have one borden twin know and the other not. After all, they're duplicates.
Why would he want to waste Angiers money in Colorado if he wants the money himself?
I've watched it more than anyone ever #realtalk obsession is a young man's game
The Machine was never real. There is no teleportation or duplication.
machine works, it does teleport persons or objects, the side effect though is that it makes a 100% copy, what we dont know is if it leaves the copy behind OR if it teleports the copy, however, the original and the copy are one and the same, both are the original, but for our purposes we always use phrases like copy or duplicates, number 1 number 2, but technically, in the film, they are both the original up until the point the machine worked and created 2, after that, they are capable of free thinking from there on. first time both think of the gun, one reaches for it the other knows its there and decides to talk to the other with the phrase "no wait, I'm the *bang gunshot*"
Then how did Angier perform his 100 shows of the real transported man and finally frame Borden for his murder?
@@xt355 IT WAS A DOUBLE. I`m seriously amazed this needs to be explained again and again.
@@xt355 he used 101 doubles? 1 for the preview to get the theater and 100 for the acts drowning them all? this isnt a dalmatian movie!!!!
@@LLlap was it then gerald root all the time for double and was he always on stage and dropping down from trap door? What if borden decided to show up in say around 50th show how was then he preparing to frame borden?
In the beginning one of the twins ties the knot on Julia then unties it and ties the tighter not I can’t fathom why?
you want to be....fooled
Bro what movie were you watching🤣?? Borden 1 selling out his brother really?🤣 I mean cutter trying to get Angier's wealth is a bit of stretch but it could be true, but the twins that have shared a life all their lives are turning on each other? They literally each gave up fingers, love and one ultimately his life. They literally get revenge in the end because of this, but somehow we're supposed to believe Borden 1 helped Angier set up his brother, yet he killed him after Angier set up Borden 2 and he was hanged🤔!! I know Nolan's movies are usually open to interpretation but this takes the cake as on of the most out there theories😂 Maybe watch the movie again and some reviews on it.
It probably is a bit of a stretch if they really are brothers. But, as I said in the video, I don’t think they are. The only mention that they are twins comes from the diary written by Borden #2. He may believe they are twins but only Cutter and Borden #1 know the truth. He is a clone which is why they are able to sacrifice him.
Borden had a clone from tesla!!! If he had a twin then he would have done the trick long before he was an assistant already!! The bigger question is , on which side cutter really was? I think he and Mr.A helped Borden to make another clone bec why did they put the machine to a special place at the end and that switching scenes between the theater and the court house. I thought sometimes the machine was right under the place where they hanged him so he fell into that but it wasn't. So that means cutter tricked Borden to shoot Mr.A's clone because the last clone in the water tank was alive and holding his breath 🤔 that was Mr.A I think. So both men were alive after all!
Makes so much sense! ::likes::
Borden #2 is not a twin brother. It's a clone from when Borden used Telsa's machine.
No it's definitely a twin brother. The bird scene even alludes to that in the first act of the movie.
@@ManchesterBurns No, it seems more likely that the bird scene alludes to the main twist which is that Jackman's character is killing his clones.
when did borden use tesla machine? the movie tells us tesla never built a machine for borden and borden never went to see tesla
angiers should of won fork batman
Bravo!
Wow wow wow.
Nice
Too far of a reach this theory
Lets discuss Nolan made an incomplete movie , (obviously on purpose) Frst of all i Admire your theory alot. Secondly the movies plot gets tricky when teslas machine duplicates a subject keeping in mind that when tesla performed the experiment with the cat , the cat was duplicated multiple times though he only did the experiment just one and first time with the cat. What this movie lacks is the ending where there must been a tank with Angie in it pretending to be dead but not actually dead because lets say the tank wasnt filled completely with water letting that particular clone of angie keep breathing . Keeping in mind the clone is exact replica of the subject as when angie performed the experiment on himself the first time, Clone knew the real angie is gonna shoot him which is why he kept on saying waiiiiit.. and if there was a living clone in that tank at the end of movie which had all concious and memories of Angie himself , and say boler kill angie infront of him would have made clone carry on seeking the revenge which would have left the Totem spinning for the audience even after the movie was ended..
Nice Guy MaaNii ya it’s one of the biggest questions that Nolan left for us to answer. What version of Angiers do we see at the end of the film and is Borden #2 a twin or a clone.
@@funhousefilmreviews9767 i believe that bordens twin ( sorry i mistyped borden for bolen in the above coment) was really a twin brother by birth. Because if it wasnt a brother and a clone it wouldnt had too close relationship with real borden . Keeping in mind that borden didnt give out his secret to even his wife the woman he loved to keep his marriage alive, borden would never trade his wife for a scientific experiment aka clone . The reason he let his wife go away and not give his secret is only because he had a more committed relationship with the act and magic and secret since childhood days. As Angie also stated this to olivia that he(borden) is always acting living in the act all the time even after the show is over. But Yes nolan did leave Angies ending too hasty and unfinished as I said if there was one alive Angie in that tank it would have brought peace to people like you and me.. And on a deeper note one can think that cutter might have the machine for a long time and tesla was on it with cutter and they did a clone of borden and sent angie for 2 years to take away his as much money as they can but then question arises that if they were to kill him when time comes they could have done it already somewhere when angies wife died why wait so many years .. and it would have just been some wild things rip off and keeping in mind nolan does not make such movies , even if he did made one he would have given out such ending openly because such a movie is incomplete without such climax. What i believe is that he didnt let totem spin for this one is because he did not want to promote such rivalries in real life as obsession takes man to places he didnt plan to go. If this only reason is not the case then i will say nolan did disappoint me on this one with angies ending. Though he never disappoints , its just incomplete the totem must be kept spinning he should have balanced the equation. Only reason you and people like you discuss this movies actual ending even after 13 years is only because of dis balance nolan kept in angies ending part and knowing the fact that it never will be balanced is the most disappointing thing for audience like you and me..
Wow thorough and thoughtful. I like everything you say. I can supply a counter argument though for why Cutter and Borden waited so long to kill them and why they didn’t just kill him in the first place to get his money. The original plan was never to kill him for his money but to con him out of all his money in Colorado. However, that plan was cut short when Edison burned down Tesla’s lab.
Plan B was to get his inheritance after he died. Inorder to get his inheritance, they needed him to adopt Borden’s daughter so that she would get the inheritance. Therefore, they framed Borden #2 to allow Angiers to adopt the girl knowing that he was jealous of Borden’s family life.
That’s my theory anyway.
@@funhousefilmreviews9767 and this can also prove easily that bordens twin was a clone and cutter tesla and borden all planned it to give away the clone when time came and edisons men burning the place could easily be a hoax as well as their time in colarado was done as angie was losing his patience so they hired few men and hotel manager who was obviously with tesla as he gave electricity to whole town, whole town was with tesla told angie they are edisons men. I Agree with what you said. But i think this would have been a totally different genre of movie there are plenty of con movies and as i already said if nolan wanted to make a con movie he wouldnt hesitate. Infact with your theory nolan can make a sequesl or prequel to prestige callind it The Pledge how they framed angie in all this. I wish nolan makes a movie on your theory that way alot of people will be at peace, but if he does not make a 2nd part, till then this theory will only be theoretical ( no doubt a good one) but man needs an ending or a totem kept spinning here nolan with Angier didnt do any. Because nolans work is far better than just Angier dying like this in my opinion. Great work you r doing , I admire and appreciate alot with what you r doing particularly your take on this film. And sorry for typos im typing from a mobile not a computer ..
Thank you! Stay tuned for my Tarantino retrospective
where root gone?
Angier and Cutter debate what to do with him during a show and decide to fire him for his arrogance and manipulative ways after Borden starts his next tour.
He's in the water tank, drowned. There are no clones. Don't forget, when we meet Root drunk at the bar, he boasts he has played Faust. Faust is the famous stiry of the man who sold his soul. The implication being Root has damned himself coming to work for Angiers.
to his roots
THE HEGALIYON DIALECT =OFFER THE AUDIENCE THE PROBLEM/OFFER THE AUDIENCE THE REACTION/THEN OFFER THE AUDIENCE THE SOLUTION THIS IS PAGANISMS TEMPLATE OR THEIR (MO) MOTUS OPERANDIE
There are no clones. We beleving in the machine It's the trick of the movie.
The movie it's a psychological thriller not science fiction movie.
Both diaries are manufactured to fool the readers. Most of the movie seen on screen it's characters reading the events written in the diary not real events..."The pledge"
We end up believing n the clone machine and Borden tricks. "The turn"
At the end, audience watching the movie still believing in the cloning the machine is the true prestige for Nolan. We want to be fooled.
Angier went around the world, spent a fortune and did terrible things by killing multiple doubles for his limited shows. Borden knows it at the end that's why he doesn't want to look further for the tricks. He got fooled by his own trick losing wife and brother.
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeird!