Comparing Batman Begins, Insomnia and The Prestige

Whilst the plots and story lines of the three films that I have chosen that have been directed by Christopher Nolan are quite different, they do share some similarities in relation to the use of techniques and the types of themes that are portrayed. All three films (Batman Begins, Insomnia and The Prestige) come under the thriller category, largely due to the psychological nature of the themes and ideas that are portrayed in them. The psychological nature of the films helps to add depth and complexity to the storyline and forces the viewer to continually be thinking throughout the film. The psychological nature also gives the films a more realistic feel and essentially attempts to put the viewer in the main character of characters position throughout the film.

Two of the three films (Batman Begins and The Prestige) use a non-linear narrative structure to some degree. In Batman Begins the non-linear structure is largely present at the start of the film rather than recurring throughout the whole film as the non-linear structure is largely used to portray the background of Batman and the different factors that led Bruce Wayne to adopt the Batman identity before carrying on in a more linear fashion. In The Prestige however the non-linear structure is present for almost the entire story as it follows the storyline based upon what the two main characters (Robert Angier and Alfred Borden) are reading in one another's diaries. Essentially meaning a scene will start in the present with one of the men reading the others diary before the scene changes to visually depict what is being read, resulting in a reasonably complex storyline.

Whilst Insomnia doesn't use a non-linear narrative structure it does rely on the presence of psychological themes throughout the film which is given emphasis by the repeated use of flashbacks. This creates a similar effect to the use of non-linear structure as it depicts the main characters memory of a significant event that occurs earlier in the film and helps to give the film a more realistic feel.