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CHRISTOPER NOLAN on how he makes a movie about magic without giving away any secrets:
“You make the movie the magic trick, a set of magic tricks. And you ruthlessly expose stage magic and don’t worry about it, because I’m not a magician.”
CHRISTIAN BALE:
“My grandfather was a magician, I never saw him perform, but he had a few old tricks in a chest up in the attic and he would pull it down now and again.”
HUGH JACKMAN:
“I was pretty much into this movie when I heard Chris Nolan was directing it. Then I read the script and just loved it. I was kind of shocked at how amazingly close the original script I read was to the film that was made. The film is just phenomenal.”
MICHAEL CAINE (Cutter):
“The biggest magician of the lot is Christopher Nolan who has made the movie. The whole movie is one great magic trick which is what’s fascinating about it. You get these layers and no one is what they seem.”
BALE:
“The rivalry I was focusing on was the knowledge of a more brilliant magician [Borden], and that a more brilliant showman [Angier] was being considered the better talent, and his hatred of having to sell yourself in that way in order for people to understand. He is by far the best magician.”
JACKMAN:
“I think the roles of Christian and I were tailor made. My character is a very good magician, but Christian’s is a great magician. My character elevates himself as a magician by his natural ability on stage, and I’ve had a lot of experience on stage, so that’s something that comes easily to me. There’s a tragedy that happens early on, in his personal life, and then, somehow, he’s fueled by this ambition and the anger over what happened, and it turns him into being a much darker, more intense and, ultimately, very dangerous person.”
CAINE:
“Hugh Jackman is a knockout. I had most of my scenes with him. I had never met Hugh personally, but I was one of his biggest fans when I saw The Boy from Oz onstage, I thought that he was tremendous, and he’s tremendous in this, and he’s just a really nice man too, and Christian as well. He’s a wonderful guy.”
NOLAN on whether he was worried casting Michael Caine again with Christian Bale right after doing Batman Begins:
“They’re such great movie stars, you just sort of accept it. I might have had more pause if the key relationship was between them. If the relationship was similar to what it was in the last film, that might have given me pause of thought. But Cutter’s relationship is very much with Hugh’s character. So no, I think they’re just very talented people.”
JACKMAN on who would win in a fight, Batman or Wolverine:
“Come on! Even Christian would say Wolverine. Batman has got a cool belt and some cool gadgets, but let’s face it, he’s human.”
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THE CONCEPT:
