The Prestige
Movie Quote Quiz

Ackerman: We'll have to dress it up a little. Disguise it. Give them enough reason to doubt it.

Alfred Borden: Everything's going to be all right, because I love you very much.
Sarah: Say it again.
Alfred Borden: I love you.
Sarah: Not today.
Alfred Borden: What do you mean?
Sarah: Well some days it's not true. Maybe today you're more in love with magic. I like being able to tell the difference, it makes the days it is true mean something.

Olivia Wenscombe: He wants me to come work for you and steal your secrets.
Alfred Borden: What does he need my secrets for? His trick is top-notch. He vanishes, and then he reappears instantly on the other side of the stage - mute, overweight, and unless I'm mistaken, very drunk. It's astonishing, how does he do it?

Robert Angier: He's a dreadful magician.
Cutter: No, he's a wonderful magician. He's a dreadful showman.

Judge: How large do you think this tank was?
Cutter: Eh... 400,500 gallons, maybe.
Judge: And how do you think he was able to move ta tank of this size?
Cutter: He's the magician. Why don't you ask him?

Nikola Tesla: Nothing is impossible, Mr. Angier. What you want is simply expensive.

Alfred Borden: The secret impresses no one. The trick you use it for is everything.

Sarah: I know what you really are. And Alfred, I can't live like this.
Alfred Borden: Oh, you think I can live like this? You think I bloody enjoy, living like this? We have a beautiful house, lovely little girl, we're married, what is so wrong with your life?

Alfred Borden: So... We go alone now. Both of us. Only I don't have as far to go as you. Go. You were right, I should have left him to his damn trick. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for a lot of things. I'm sorry about Sarah. I didn't mean to hurt her... I didn't. You go and live your life in full now, all right? You live for both of us.
Fallon: Goodbye.

Alfred Borden: You went halfway around the world. You spent a fortune. You did terrible things. Really terrible things Robert. And all for nothing.

Robert Angier: I never thought I'd find an answer at the bottom of a pint glass.
Cutter: Hasn't stopped you looking, has it?

Cutter: Every great magic trick consists of three parts or acts. The first part is called "The Pledge." The magician shows you something ordinary: a deck of cards, a bird or a man. He shows you this object. Perhaps he asks you to inspect it to see if it is indeed real, unaltered, normal. But of course... It probably isn't. The second act is called "The Turn." The magician takes the ordinary something and makes it do something extraordinary. Now you're looking for the secret... But you won't find it, because of course you're not really looking. You don't really want to know. You want to be fooled. But you wouldn't clap yet. Because making something disappear isn't enough; you have to bring it back. That's why every magic trick has a third act, the hardest part, the part we call "The Prestige."

Sarah: No more lies. No more secrets.
Alfred Borden: Secrets are my life.

Nikola Tesla: Exact science, Mr Angier, is not an exact science.

Sarah: Alfred, I can't live like this!
Alfred Borden: Well, what do you want from me?
Sarah: I want... I want you to be honest with me. No tricks, no lies, no secrets. Do you... Do you love me?
Alfred Borden: Not today. No.

Revealing mistake: When one twin (presumably Alfred) is removing the other twin's fingers, "Alfred's" upper arm passes through his twin's head as "Alfred" reaches for the hammer. [Fixed on DVD.]

Phixius

More mistakes in The Prestige

Trivia: During Borden's performance which ends with Angier shooting him, on at least two occasions the bill for the show can be seen off to one side. About halfway down is the name "Harry Dresden", the name of the wizard protagonist from the Dresden Files book series by Jim Butcher.

Tailkinker

More trivia for The Prestige

Question: In Angier's final performance Borden watches Angier's duplicate drown in the tank. Does the other Angier still reappear for the audience, and take a bow? They never explain this in the film. If he does take the bow, Borden would never have been accused of murder. If he doesn't take the bow, how does the duplicate know not to do so? The duplicate would have no idea that Borden was below stage.

Answer: Angier always wants to take revenge on Borden as he is the reason behind the death of his wife. He knows that Borden is in the crowd the two times, first time, Olivia suggests Borden to watch the new "Transported Man" trick of Angier, where Borden finds out the trap door in the bottom of the machine, second time, Borden wants to know how Angier flies that distance with in seconds through the trap door. As expected by the Angier in the final play, Borden reaches the back stage where actual Angier is drowning (it is as always actual Angier drowns and the replica of Angier appears at some distance in every performance). So, as per the plan the replica hides to create an impression that Borden intentionally murders Angier. Note: the replica of Angier has the same ability and sense like actual Angier.

Rajesh v

It's never stated whether the "real" Angier drowns or takes the bow, but it's implied that it doesn't matter - as the clone is a perfect copy, they are both "Angier." Angier at one point says, referring to toll the trick has taken on him, that each time he did it, even he himself didn't know whether he would be the man in the box or the prestige. Similarly, when Angier asked Tesla which hat of all the duplicates was his, Tesla replied "They are all your hat."

Answer: No, he does not appear to take a bow. The set-up is as follows: Angier invites the audience on stage to observe the machine, but in reality it is so he can watch for Borden trying to work out the trick. When he sees Borden in the audience, he also knows Borden will not learn anything from the stage, and will go backstage. He then clones himself, and the clone is created with the exact knowledge he had at the time of the cloning, including Borden's presence and the trap the original Angier had set. So the "new" Angier hides away the best he can, letting Borden be framed for the murder of the "original" Angier. Had he appeared, not only would it ruin his plan of framing Borden, but it would also reveal how he had done his trick, and he would not allow any of those to happen, no matter what.

Twotall

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