(Long Island, N.Y.) I never got around to reviewing director Christopher Nolan’s last film, a little something called The Dark Knight, which was about this guy called Batman. Maybe you’ve heard of it. So, to make up for that omission in my review archive, I’m going to give my official judgment on it right now. Are you ready? It was really good.
Okay, now on to Nolan’s new movie: Inception, a sci-fi movie starring the great Leonardo DiCaprio. The funny thing about Inception is that no one seems to understand what it’s about. Yeah, there’s buzz around it due to this being Nolan’s big Dark Knight follow-up (Batman 3 coming up next!), but the trailers have been vague at best. Fascinating to watch, but vague. And this veil of mystery has enveloped the plot of Inception until opening day…a rarity in the film industry, especially when it comes to such a big-name release. This fact had me interested, as director Nolan is known for his intricate, finely-woven, and at times confusing stories and, freed of the slightly more logical constraints forced upon him buy the established Batman universe, Inception was sure to be deep. But now it’s here, and like 2000’s Memento and 2006’s The Prestige, it’s layered and might actually require more than one viewing to take in all the little nuances. Luckily, it’s entertaining enough to make repeat trips into its world quite bearable.
I’m going to go light on the plot recap, if only to preserve the abstruseness of the story until you get around to watching it. The film works better that way, since none of the previews I’ve read have gotten it right, anyway. Inception takes place in a world where people can invade other’s dreams, ala Freddy Krueger. Only, instead of hunting down and killing promiscuous teenagers, these dream invaders are a bit more subtle and conniving; they implant ideas and subconscious suggestions, in addition to stealing memories. Inception deals with Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a subconscious security expert who leads a team of crack
operatives in committing dread-based crimes.
Navigating the dream world and accomplishing their goals are a tricky process (one would assume), and each member of Cobb’s team serves a distinct purpose: Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a “forger” who can change his dream identity; Eames (Tom
Hardy
); and an “architect” named Nash (Lukas Haas) who basically shapes and balances the reality of the dream world. Hired by Saito (Ken Watanabe) for a bit of subliminal industrial espionage, the addition of a new architect to the team (Ellen Page) and Cobb’s own anguished mental baggage threaten the operation and soon has the viewer beginning to doubt
what is real and what isn’t.
Inception is a tight, intelligent,
and enthralling film from a man, Christopher Nolan, who seems to excel at crafting such tales. A few weeks ago I called Toy Story 3 the best film of the year, and in the wake of Inception’s release, it still manages to hold onto that honor, mainly because the capper to Pixar’s trilogy affected me on a far more emotional level. But brilliant writing, acting, visuals (the infamous shot from the trailers of the dreamscape city folding up on itself is just the tip of the iceberg), and a completely unique story with more layers than an onion (oh, no, I didn’t just use the worse cliché on the planet, did I?) all combine to ensure that Inception snags the year’s #2 spot, for sure.
Special notice must be taken of Leonardo DiCaprio, who by now I’m sure has convinced everyone with a pulse that he is one of this generation’s best (one of? maybe even THE best) actor. The role of Cobb is as complicated as I’ve seen in a modern movie…I’ve purposely avoided revealing much of anything about his back-story so you, the viewer can be as bowled over as I was. Just amazing. But his back-up cast somehow manages NOT to get lost in his wake, due to pure talent and Nolan’s apparent ability to consistently coax the
very best performances out of
the people under his watch. Joseph Gordon-Levitt in particular stands out (you might remember him as the only actor that WASN’T horrible in the recent G.I. Joe stinker), as does Juno star Ellen Page. Nolan regulars Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine, and Ken Watanabe (he was in Batman Begins, remember?) also pop up as well, and each one just impresses more than the next.
So, Inception is a great, thought-provoking sci-fi thriller. Go watch it.
