As the Oscar buzz begins, Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige has silently faded into the background, behind early favorites such as The Departed, The Queen and Marie Antoinette. Although the film doesn’t fall into the typical award-winning category, it is still a cinematic accomplishment.

From the opening credits, Nolan, who also directed Batman Begins, Insomnia and Memento, provides the audience with a complex plot that leaves the crowd surprised and off-balance.

Typically, we think of magic as light-hearted, with the simple objective to mystify and amuse, but in The Prestige a magic competition between two former friends, Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman, turns aggressive and ugly. Both struggle for the glory of the late-Victorian London stage and get their hands dirty doing so. The two magicians battle to one-up each other, and in the process secrets are divulged and lovers are exchanged. Bale and Jackman give solid lead performances, as do Michael Caine and Scarlett Johansson in supporting roles.

The Prestige opens with a terrifying death scene and then follows with a murder trial. Using flashbacks within flashbacks and a number of twists and turns, Nolan creates a perpetual sense of curiosity. Although the movie leaps around in time and changes points of view, it ultimately ties together in a magically-redeeming manner.

Compared to its rather dull counterpart, The Illusionist, which opened in theaters nearly two months beforehand, The Prestige offers a much more entertaining and engaging plotline. Needless to say, both give a much-needed revival to the intrigue and fascination of a magician’s life.