Christopher Nolan

[RNL]

Christopher Nolan (1970- )

[Vercetti]

Memento
Batman Begins
Following
Insomnia

[Capo]

1. The Prestige 2006
2. Memento 2000
3. Batman Begins 2005
4. Insomnia 2002
5. Following 1998
6. The Dark Knight 2008

[Driver]

Memento
Batman Begins

I thought Memento was brilliant, but it loses its charm after you watch it once. & Batman was good for what it was, but meh. I preferred Batman Returns.

[jrod]

Memento
Batman Begins

[svsg]

Following

[mikola]

1998: Following
2000: Memento
2002: Insomnia
2005: Batman Begins
2006: The prestige

[Capo]

Wet Dog, have you seen the original Insomnia?

[Vercetti]

I don't know if Wet Dog did, but I had the pleasure a while back. The worst scene for me to watch oddly was the dog scene for obvious reasons compared to the remake. Overall though it's better and definitely more subtle in terms of great acting.

I liked it a lot though, especially the portrayal of the "villain." The music at the end was great too, though the beat sounded a little 80'sesque.

SPOILER
The acting, specifically the subtle facial expression when the cop puts his hand between the girl's legs is excellent. His eyes express so much in the film.
SPOILERS

[Capo]

I liken Stellan Skarsgård to a Russel Crowe kind; by no means expected to make top ten lists, but holds a tremendous presence onscreen nevertheless, and, given a good script, he can easily steal a film. He's also one of the few "foreign" actors whose talent also shines through when in English-speaking roles. Figgis' Timecode comes to mind, as well as his work for von Trier in Breaking the Waves (his smiles and affection in the early scenes is what make the film so tragically powerful) and Dogville. Underrated, and, if I may say so, underused.

That said, Pacino, who usually shouts a lot, is tame in Nolan's remake, and a perfect part of the disquieting tone of the film. There are many things in the remake which I remember really liking, and Nolan proved he was a worthy choice to direct; but, whether out of loyalty to the first master or not, the original weighs more on my scales.

[Vercetti]

Although Tom Cruise proves to be a perfect image for Vincent, I would've loved to see Collateral with Crowe or Norton as Vincent like originally planned.

Crowe would've been perfect for a sociopathic type of character. He was wonderful in The Insider and I hope he works with Mann in the future.

Although Crowe as a real life person sounds like an asshole.

[Boz]

Memento [/url] (2000)
The Prestige [/url] (2006)
Insomnia (2001)
Following (1998)
Batman Begins (2005)

Memento was amazing, potentially a 4 star film upon further rewatches. Prestige was good, the rest of his career has been overrated.

[Capo]

The Prestige is fantastic. I went into it thinking of Nolan as an interesting director to watch, and came out rating him as one of the most promising directors currently working. I really hope he isn't at the top of his game just yet, though.

It's the first time I've found a thematic link throughout his work, something which I like because it gives a sense of personal weight, of expression, which you won't find in 'crafted' films such as those of Ridley Scott. They're all about obsession, and the dangerousness of obsession. And while I think he certainly could have taken this further, to the level of, say, Spider, The Prestige is a masterpiece.

I think I might see it again.

[RNL]

I think I might go see it again too.

[RNL]

It's interesting that you mention Ridley Scott, because for a while I've been thinking of Nolan as a sort of "new Ridley Scott". He's got a hell of a career ahead of him. Let's hope he avoids the slumps of his "predecessor" (or, preferrably, doesn't possess his mediocre streak at all).

The Prestige is, I think, one of the most genuinely intellectually ambitious films I've ever seen. Not only was I delighted by the multiplicity of narrative realities (what you mentioned in your Proview about the characters reading/decoding eachother's journals, while Caine narrates each's imagining of the other's experiences even while they intersect, etc, etc, I love this stuff), but the film is deeply self-referrential, and Nolan knows it, but not only that, he knows it's inherently self-referrential, and structures the film accordingly (it could've been such a flabby waste of good material in other hands). Metaphorically, stage magic is cinema (and what an ideal metaphor). The film is a magic trick. When the tricks are performed onscreen the fictional audience and the real audience merge. It's structured as Caine tells us the tricks are structured: The opening Pledges, followed by Turn after Turn after Turn, then finally the Prestige. Omar and MistaMista said in their Proviews that they saw the final twist (the Prestige) coming. I'd like to call them in here and ask, "REALLY?!"

SPOILER: Click to show

You predicted that Alfred had an identical twin? Because that's the final twist. You're led by the hand to the perfectly sensible conclusion that he had used one of Tesla's machines before Robert had, that he'd duplicated himself - but every implication is a diversion, a red herring. It's so clever, the story of Robert's attempts to emulate Alfred's "Transporting Man" by going to the most complicated and elaborate extremes reflects (nearly subconsciously) back onto Alfred's story, and we just fill in the blanks. But we're wrong. That's the Prestige: the mundanity of twinship, or the natural magic of it, if you prefer. Then, right on the heels of that revelation, we get Caine's voiceover again, telling us to watch closely, telling us that we want to be tricked. We trick ourselves. So we're the magicians and the audience? [/SPOILER][/color][/size]

What a movie, and what a magic trick.

[Capo]

SPOILER: Click to show

I saw it coming. I recognised Fallon was played by Bale, and caught the duality of the changes in loving his wife, but never for once was disappointed by this... I assumed, since I had caught it, that I was meant to have. [/SPOILER][/color][/size]

It's the first in a long time where I've come out of a cinema pretending to be a character in the film. I don't think I've done that since Spider-man.

[RNL]

admin said:

SPOILER: Click to show

I saw it coming. I recognised Fallon was played by Bale, and caught the duality of the changes in loving his wife, but never for once was disappointed by this... I assumed, since I had caught it, that I was meant to have.

[/SPOILER][/color][/size][/quote]

SPOILER: Click to show

But did you think they were identical twins or did you think Tesla's machines had something to do with it? [/SPOILER][/color][/size]

[Capo]

I'm not really sure, to be honest. The latter, I suppose.

[RNL]

SPOILER: Click to show

I didn't realize Fallon was played by Bale. Maybe we are supposed to. Whether you do or don't, though, once the story takes a turn into self-multiplication I can't see how anyone would reach any other conclusion about why he's playing two characters - and then the final twist is a total deflation of that magic, one that highlights the absurdity of Robert's obsession. [/SPOILER][/color][/size]

[Capo]

Nolan's editing is spot-on. There are two moments, one in the middle and one near the end, which as events in themselves seem rather ordinary, but the way he cuts, quite differently in each case, is simple and incredible, effective and economic.

SPOILER: Click to show

Firstly: When Borden first shows the Transported Man trick. He sets his ball bouncing off and walks into the door. We know, because of how the event is visually set up, how it's going to end, what the Prestige is going to be, but Nolan cuts away to Angier and Cutter discussing how it was done afterwards. We know what has happened, but by not seeing it for ourselves, by paying particular attention to the mystery behind it, our interest in the trick is multiplied.

Secondly, it's when Borden is hanged. When pieces of confused narrative start to come together. Nolan is very good at this; he knows how to pace things and what and where to show and when. [/SPOILER][/color][/size]