I Love The Prestige, But It Took Me Years To Notice Christopher Nolan's Clever Trick With The Characters' Names

The Prestige is famous for its twists and turns, with some tricks hiding in plain sight throughout the movie. The Prestige‘s ending reveals the desperate lengths that the two feuding magicians go to in order to elevate their acts and win bragging rights. Ultimately, the greatest trick of all is the fact that The Prestige gives its audience more than enough information to piece things together, but it relies on the idea that the audience wants to be fooled so they can go along for the ride. This means that there are plenty of subtle clues throughout The Prestige that only seem obvious in hindsight.

The Prestige isn’t the only one of Christopher Nolan’s movies packed with little details for fans to notice when they rewatch it. These Easter eggs have become one of the director’s hallmarks, even though his audience has grown accustomed to this game of hide-and-seek. Inception, Interstellar and Memento are other great examples of Nolan playing with his audience’s expectations by inserting subtle clues that make the movies even more complex and rewarding when people eventually pick them up. The Prestige might have more such clues than his other movies though.

The Initials Of The Prestige’s Main Characters Spell “Abra”

Borden And Angier Are Both Consumed By Their Obsession With Their Craft

The Prestige stars Christian Bale as Alfred Borden and Hugh Jackman as Robert Angier. Although it’s easy to miss, the initials of these characters’ names spell the word “abra” when they’re combined. This is a sly reference to the phrase “abra cadabra“, which is the kind of theatrical magical flourish that fits in perfectly with The Prestige‘s period setting. The story takes place in a time when stage magic was bigger business than it is today, and such “magic phrases” were more commonplace, possibly because they sounded exotic and mystical, which allowed audiences to buy into the heightened reality of the show.

In the original book, Angier’s first name is Rupert.

Nolan can’t take credit for this particular Easter egg, since the characters have the same initials in Christopher Priest’s novel. Some people forget that The Prestige is based on a book, because Nolan makes it his own in many ways. However, this intelligent little detail shows that Nolan knows it’s best not to alter too much. This bodes well for his upcoming adaptation of The Odyssey, since it was also a key factor to the success of Oppenheimer. It might have been tempting for Nolan to draw more attention to this detail, but he has a light touch instead, which makes the realization even more powerful.

The Real Meaning Behind The Prestige’s Character Name Trick

The Two Magicians Have A Lot In Common

Although Borden and Angier descend into a bitter, deadly feud, The Prestige often makes it clear that they have a lot in common. Both men are completely consumed by their craft, to the detriment of their personal lives, and both men are willing to carry on until the bitter end, no matter what this entails. The fact that their initials spell “abra” together is another reminder that they are two halves of the same whole. If they could only work together instead of against each other, they could easily be London’s most spectacular magic act.

Hugh Jackman crying as Robert Angier in The Prestige

A Small Detail In Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige Makes Hugh Jackman’s Character Even More Tragic

The Prestige is one of Christopher Nolan’s most complex and rewarding movies, with a long list of hidden details that enhance the drama.

Angier admits that Borden is the better magician out of the two of them, but he lacks the stagecraft and the presentation that makes Angier so much more popular. Combining Borden’s skill with Angier’s feel for the crowd would create a potent mix. Instead, they are destined to be rivals. Another key difference is that Borden is dedicated to his magic above all else, while Angier is fueled by his desire for adulation, and eventually his need for revenge after his wife’s death. As their names show, they are two sides of the same coin.

The other hidden meaning behind The Prestige‘s naming trick is that the word “abra” refers to magic, which underlines how both men’s identities are intrinsically linked to their work. It’s hard to describe who either Angier or Borden are without their professions. When their names are combined, it becomes clear that magic is all they have. This also highlights how they each spur each other on to darker and darker deeds. Perhaps they could be more fulfilled and whole without the other, but their obsession forces them to sacrifice entire parts of their identity to their feud.