With his film's finale note, Nolan attempts to flippantly justify an unresolved and exceptionally nonsensical plot point by telling his audience "You want to be fooled." What he fails to realize, however, is that cinema's most compelling trick isn't simply superficial deception, but the ability to elicit emotional engagement in something that's inherently artificial—a feat The Prestige, for all its razzle-dazzle duplicity, never pulls off.
Nick Schager
October 16, 2006