Nolan wrote and directed this with many things that hint the twist ending
**SPOILERS**
many about the fact that Bordern has a twin.
my favorite is when the little kid with Sarah cries about the bird and says to Bordern
"but where's his brother?"
what did you notice about the many hints about the ending?
Yeah, that was a good subtle hint that you don't really notice until repeat viewings. Another less obvious hint is how Borden is able to immediately see how the man does the goldfish bowl trick while Angier cannot. Borden understands how one needs to "live his act". Or when Cutter tells Angier he can make Root look like his brother, and Angier says, "I don't need him to be my brother, I need him to be me."
Of course, there are also the more obvious hints (Angier noting how Borden's mind seems divided when reading the diary, how Borden isn't sure which knot he tied, and how Sarah notices that some days he doesn't seem to love her, etc)
steveportee wrote:Yeah, that was a good subtle hint that you don't really notice until repeat viewings. Another less obvious hint is how Borden is able to immediately see how the man does the goldfish bowl trick while Angier cannot. Borden understands how one needs to "live his act". Or when Cutter tells Angier he can make Root look like his brother, and Angier says, "I don't need him to be my brother, I need him to be me."
Of course, there are also the more obvious hints (Angier noting how Borden's mind seems divided when reading the diary, how Borden isn't sure which knot he tied, and how Sarah notices that some days he doesn't seem to love her, etc)
i just love how these are unoticed on the first viewing
Why is Borden not knowing what knot he tied so significant?
Whether it was Albert or Frederick ( ) is unknown right? It was only one of them who tied the knot the night Angier's wife died.
Unless one was a knot master and the other one was not ... But, if let's say Albert was a knot master, and it was Frederick who messed up the knot, then wouldn't Albert have made sure that Frederick never helps with that trick?
the significance of the knot... well it's a tip as to who ( which Borden so to speak).. is the trouble maker..
It's also in the dialogue as well... but you would have had to read the book to know that. The words " I "... and "Myself".. these words have a significant meaning as well...
one of the many tips to the book that Nolan had in his movie that would most likely go unnoticed by people that haven't read the book...
So that must mean that technically Angier was only having a conflict with one Borden, while the other Borden's attitude was like "you should stop, otherwise we'll both get pulled into this."
Cilogy wrote:So that must mean that technically Angier was only having a conflict with one Borden, while the other Borden's attitude was like "you should stop, otherwise we'll both get pulled into this."
This.
One Borden was more troublemaking than the other. Remember, "We're done. He won, his trick is the best. Don't go back to his show again... We're done." was said by the good Sarah-lovin Borden while Freddy who loved Scarlet.Jo went back on that 100th performance, got accused of killing Angier and was hanged. Freddy should have listened to Alfred and they would have been better off.
Also, I've noticed that the one who loved Sarah was not only the more controlled Borden but was also the better engineer of the two.
i refer to the engineer... the father of the little girl... as Fallon...
Trying to get his brother to give up on his obsession with Angier, but to no avail... Borden's obsession led to his eventual death..
as did Angier's own obsession lead to his eventual demise as well...
Fallon and Cutter out lived them both, and Fallon was reunited with his daughter in the end. I also love how Nolan showed a bit of the scene between Cutter and Fallon's daughter near the beginning of the movie... demonstrating the three steps to a trick... playing around with the little birds... a little foreshadowing on the down low...
the more i think about that movie... brilliant ...
Okay for explanation purposes, and based on the book names, let's say that Albert is the father & married to Sarah, and Frederick is the troublemaker who is with Olivia.
The way I saw the ending was that it was Frederick who was imprisoned and hanged. This is why:
1. When Angier tells him to look at all the water tanks, he says "I don't care." Frederick would have cared.
2. Albert was the one who told Frederick (as Fallon) "don't go back there, leave him alone, we're done." Albert was the reasonable one, but Frederick still went down and saw Angier drown.
) is unknown right? It was only one of them who tied the knot the night Angier's wife died.