Wednesday, January 15, 2014

F This Movie! - The Prestige

Patrick and Mark Ahn work their magic.



Download this episode here.

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Also discussed this episode: Her (2013), New World (2013), A Company Man (2012), Bronies: The Extremely Unexpected Adult Fans of My Little Pony (2012), Exit to Hell (2013), Man of Tai Chi (2013)

15 comments:

  1. Awesome choice for a podcast. A few times a month I find myself doing a Michael Caine impression and explaining the three parts of a magic trick (usually to absolutely no one but myself) while doing something arbitrary, like cooking. "The first part o' makin' a pizza pie is called the pledge. The pledge starts with makin' sure your dough is just right. The second part o' the trick is the turn. This is the part where fresh garlic and the secret ingredient go in." Sometimes I throw "like so, Master Bruce" in there, too. In my world (and in Nolan's, apparently) Alfred and Bruce are just one step removed from Alfred and Cutter. I'd like to think Michael Caine would be very charmed if he ever saw me, but the truth is he would probably slap me. And that would probably be very fair.

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    1. "You want to be...food"

      I also find myself doing Cainisms from The Prestige for no reason to no one more often than I'd like. Very often describing what it's like to drown to an empty room.

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  2. Just the other day, I was thinking about how much I would enjoy a podcast on this film!

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    1. Yeessssss. Just call it magic, Luke. Hope you enjoy the show, and let us know if you have other movies you want F'd.

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  3. It makes me embarrassed that, when they were originally released, I liked The Illusionist more than The Prestige. I think at the time I really thought Edward Norton was the best and really disliked Christian Bale. Fortunately, as time passed, and people convinced me that I was wrong, my opinion on this matter shifted drastically. The Prestige is great, and The Illusionist is okay at best.

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  4. Wait, wait, wait....Deep Impact is better than Armageddon.

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  5. Great show guys. Im glad you covered this movie as I often feel that The Prestige is the forgotten Nolan film at times, because it was made after his break out films (Memento/Insomnia/Batman Begins) but before his "elevated to megastar status" films (Dark Knight/Inception) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HerIXcivHMM)

    I agree with what you were both saying about the criticisms of his style, particularly his disregard for female character depth. Along with the convo of the autobiographical nature of his work I was thinking "where does his wife, Emma Thomas fit in here". Then you said the comment about females only existing to the extent that they serve a purpose (paraphrasing) which rung true because she is his Producer. You might be on to something.
    The other criticism you had Mark, was how emotion is often not explored for the sake of action and plot in his movies. I see what you mean (and i'd add "thematic threads" to the list of his preferences too), but in my more optimistic moments I see it as "economy of storytelling" and something he is particularly good at. Unfortunately it can result in some "told not shown" moments, but I think overall he places the emphasis on the right side of the scale (if we were to assume it is one or the other: emotional connection vs thematic depth).

    In the end I tend to go see Nolan films for "Wow" moments rather than heart string moments, but I too lost my "he can do no wrong" mind set a while ago.

    Great show. F FEST BITCHES!

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  6. DORK ALERT:

    So Edison & Tesla's feud was sparked (see what I did there), with the whole AC/DC thing (current not the band). Tesla solved Edison's Direct Current with Alternating Current. Was even promised money, which Edison laughed in Tesla's face.

    Edison DID in fact hire schoolboys to steal local dogs & cats to publicly electrocute them, to smear Tesla's alternating current system, essentially, that AC is too dangerous for home use.

    So the rivalry was WAY worse (I guess comedic).

    For realsies: http://muller.lbl.gov/teaching/physics10/old%20physics%2010/physics%2010%20notes/electrocution.html

    This has been another Michael J. Fox Fun Fact (too soon).

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  7. First things first, Patrick I totally saw Drug War (based off a Netflix this reccommendation) and while I wouldn't put it in my top ten of the year, I definitely dug it a lot. As to The Prestige, its my 2nd fav film of Nolan's behind The Dark Knight. Nolan's movies are definitely more thinking movies but to say he doesn't connect at all with characters is selling the guy short.

    While his strength is definitely scope, which is probably the best thing Dark Knight Rises has going for it, I have never felt like I have had trouble connecting with his characters (although it would be interesting to see another small picture like Memento from him again) The faults with the Prestige are so piddlingly minor for me that I don't even want to go into them, its just a straight up great film.

    One quick note, seriously Cloppers, I totally understand the big boobed Manga/Hentai fans out there but let's try and stay away from the beastiality that would be great thanks.

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    1. Bestiality? It's in your (or rather, their) heads and it's about a fictitious character! I will grant that it is weird and, by definition, deviant. But listening to the Savage Lovecast has really broadened my appreciation for what people find erotic and not judge them. There is no way the movie could have gotten into Cloppers without it being the only thing people took away from it. "Bronies? Aren't those the people who jerk off to a cartoon? That's fucked up," says the general public.

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    2. I agree with that. And I'm glad that people have found this harmless thing that makes them happy, and the movie certainly celebrates that. What it doesn't do is even really try to answer "Why?" It just says "These people like this thing!" So it works as a valentine to the show and to Bronies, but isn't much of a documentary.

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    3. Good to hear, Patrick. I get that the doc fails to explain anything. In some cases, simply showing a thing is enough and no explanation is required, but this is probably not the case. Unless it truly is inexplicable. But then why make it in the first place?

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    4. I feel like I should throw in a quick note here, I wasn't judging the regular Bronies fan, someone who legitimately likes the cartoons, it was just the whole thing of Cloppers threw me for a loop. I may have been a bit too strong with the beastiality comment there. Also I haven't seen the doc myself (I'll at least check out a bit of it now out of curiousity.) Anyway, this is already more than I ever thought I would comment about My Little Pony so I'll end it here.

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  8. I just rewatched The Prestige so I could listen to the podcast - like Patrick it had been long enough since I'd seen it that I was very fuzzy on the details and didn't want to spoil it - it really is that kind of movie that you can forget the ins and outs of - I guess with all of the misdirection you forget what's what.

    Anyway, I REALLY liked it this second time and I really like your theory on how it follows the Pledge/Turn/Prestige formula. As I was listening I was kind of agreeing that it didn't quite seem to fit, but also couldn't imagine a smart guy like Nolan not pulling it off and based on your thoughts I think he did.

    The chronology of this movie is ridiculously complicated and almost Inception-like in its layers. Bale (in the not-quite present) reading Jackman's diary entries (about the past) about reading Bale's diary (about the even further past) - it certainly demands that you pay attention and I can imagine people getting lost very easily. I know it took this second viewing to really get a firm grip of what was going on with who when but like most of Nolan's films you are rewarded for your efforts - I think this is now my second favourite of his movies (after Inception).

    Your complaints about the flashbacks are valid (though maybe due to not seeing it on the big screen I did not notice Fallon was Bale the first time so you might be an outlier there) but I think Nolan really wanted to drive home the point, as explained by Caine's voiceover, that the answers to the mystery (of the trick or, in this case, the movie) are all there (cue flashbacks) but we just don't want to see them - I thought that worked.

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    1. I grant that there are numerous complications that take a few watches to puzzle out, but I didn't find they added anything. The was little emotion to the whole thing so I just felt clever for having pieced it together. I would rather there be some emotional heft to what is constructed.

      Although perhaps I should rewatch it. Been a few years.

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