One of the most underappreciated Christopher Nolan movies, The Prestige, is returning to theaters.
In an interview with Fred Asquith, Nolan noted that this year is the 20th anniversary of The Prestige and stated that the film will be returning to theaters on January 21st, 2027. This was a bit of a surprise, but a welcomed one given it’s one of the more underseen Nolan films. The film was released between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, so it was right as Nolan was about to be catapulted into superstardom, meaning it might not have been on a lot of casual fans’ radars.
The film follows two rival magicians (played by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale) who try to one-up each other with dangerous tricks, with the ultimate goal of achieving true teleportation. The film also stars the likes of David Bowie, Scarlett Johansson, and Michael Caine. It’s a thrilling film and arguably the best movie about magicians ever made, focusing on themes of obsession and perfection of one’s craft. Many have also pointed out that the movie also resembles a metaphor for the act of filmmaking itself. If you’ve never seen it and haven’t had it spoiled for you, you’ll absolutely want to check out this re-release in January.
Nolan’s films are no stranger to re-releases. His Batman films are re-released anytime there’s a relevant opportunity to and Interstellar had a 10-year IMAX re-release in 2024, which was a major hit with fans. It’s unclear if The Prestige will be getting an IMAX re-release or if it will be reserved for more traditional formats. There is a single shot in The Prestige that was captured on IMAX 70MM film, as Nolan used it to test if the format was feasible for his next film, The Dark Knight.
However, IMAX has accomodated non-IMAX films for re-releases before such as David Fincher’s Seven, Jaws, and most recently, Speed Racer. Given Nolan is basically IMAX’s mascot, it wouldn’t be surprising if they teamed up for an IMAX re-release of The Prestige.
IGN gave The Prestige a 9/10 upon its release back in 2006, noting that the filmmaking itself is reminiscent of pulling off a complex magic trick.
“Returning to more intimate filmmaking after helming Batman Begins, the director manages to make this complex story as easily understandable and effective as he made the outwardly straightforward comic book adaptation dense and sophisticated. But that may be the filmmaker’s greatest trick: to make the simple ones look complicated and the complicated ones look simple,” IGN wrote. “Because any truly great performance is almost as much showmanship as it is actual talent, and Nolan possesses both in spades — which means that as brilliant as it is, The Prestige is not just a convincing trick perpetrated on a willing audience. Rather, it’s a sign that more, bigger and better ones are sure to come.”
Cade Onder is a freelancer for IGN’s news team. He covers all things entertainment, including gaming, film, and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.
