Первая сцена
What happened, Robert? You, sir. Just a rubber ball, yes? Thank you. Just a rubber ball. No. Not normal. Not a normal rubber ball. It’s magic. He had a new trick. Was it good? It was the greatest magic trick I’ve ever seen. I’ve seen him perform the trick three times now, Mr. Carter. The prestige is the same man. No, it’s not. I promise you. It’s the same man. He wears padded gloves to hide his damaged fingers, but if you look closely, you can tell. He doesn’t know how to sell his trick to an audience, but I do. Yeah, well, we can use you as a climax to show him. Yes. The man stole my life. I’m going to steal his trick.
- prestige – the final and most impressive part of a magic trick
- padded gloves – gloves that have extra cushioning
- a climax – the most intense or important point of a story, play, or film
Вторая сцена
In my travels, I have seen the future. And it is a strange future indeed. The world, ladies and gentlemen, is on the brink of new and terrifying possibilities. What you’re about to witness is not magic. It is purely science. I would like to invite you to come up on stage now so that you can examine the machine for yourselves. Man’s reach exceeds his imagination. 100 performances. Why? Does his method dictate that? Is it a publicity move? What is it? He’s a no-talent magician, and they’re calling him the bloody best in England. Why? 50 yards in a second. In a second! And all that we know is he uses a trapdoor. Ah, brilliant. What is going on under that stage? Huh? Why can’t you outthink him?
- (phrase) on the brink of – being very close to a particular situation or event
- man’s reach exceeds his imagination – human potential and ambition can surpass what we can envision or conceive
- a publicity move – an action to gain public attention
- a trapdoor – a concealed door or opening in a floor, ceiling, or wall
- to outthink – outdo in thinking
- to make a sacrifice – to give up something valuable for the sake of something or someone else
Третья сцена
Simple, maybe, but not easy. There’s nothing easy about two men sharing one life. It’s a sacrifice, Robert. That’s the price of a good trick. But you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you? Haven’t I made sacrifices? No. Yes. It takes nothing to steal another man’s work. It takes everything. No! No, no, wait! I’m not… It took courage. It took courage to climb into that machine. Every night, not knowing if I’d be the man in the box or in the prestige. The audience knows the truth. The world is simple, miserable, sob. Solid all the way through. But if you could fool them, even for a second, then you could make them wonder. And then you… Then you got to see something very special. It was… It was the look on their faces.
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