Inception (2010)
Written and Directed By: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Leonardo Dicaprio, Ellen Page, Marion Cottilard, Tom Hardy, Joseph-Gordon Levitt, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine and Ken Watanabe
What is Inception? Inception is a film that challenges you, moves you, shocks you and wows you. Inception is science fiction, its drama, its action and its philosophy. Inception provides everything you could want from a summer blockbuster with spectacle, explosions, action and excitement but also everything you would want from a film in general with intelligence and emotion. Inception is the film of 2010 so far and the latest hit from Christopher Nolan.
Inception centers on a man named Cobb (Leonardo Dicaprio) who is an Extractor, what is that exactly? Well along with a few others he is able to go into peoples minds through their dreams and access their secrets. With this skill he has become a thief and a man in demand for many powerful corporations. When Saito a very powerful businessman approaches him however, he has another concept in mind…Inception. Inception is the act of planting an idea into somebody’s mind and is seemingly an impossible task. However if Cobb is able to pull off this job then he will be able to see his children again, however his deep personal issues as well as the complication of the task make this the toughest job of Cobbs career.
Christopher Nolan is the filmmaker who gave us Memento a noir thriller with a protagonist suffering from short term memory loss and a backwards narrative, as well as The Dark Knight a summer blockbuster spectacle with epic action as well as the performances, emotion and intelligence of a crime drama. Inception could be described the perfect marriage of these two films, it has a complex, multi layered plot that demands your constant attention as well as some of the most spectacular action sequences and special effects of the year. To say Inception is a confusing film is an understatement, miss a minute at your peril as this is a film that is constantly aksing the audience to keep up and pay attention. Rarely in a film of this size is there such a masterful story that requires the audience to actually think with it being uncompromising in its complexity. Basically make sure you go the loo before the film starts. However the thinking doesn’t stop once the end credits roll, Nolan has given us a film that will leave audiences talking and theorizing long after the final scene. If Nolan doesn’t receive a best original screenplay nomination at the Oscars it is a crime as he has delivered a masterful ideas driven, complex, engaging, character driven summer blockbuster about dreams, death, faith and explosions.
Inception not only succeeds on a storytelling level but as a technical spectacle. Jaw dropping special effects in the dream sequences are matched with masterful direction and incredibly skilled editing as the film reaches its climax. Hans Zimmer also deserves credit for his score as well as Wally Pfister for his cinematography as both aid the tone and feel of the film. However a great story and superb craftsmanship would be wasted if the performances don’t work and rest assured they do. Leonardo Dicaprio gives perhaps the performance of his career as Cobb rivaling his work in Shutter Island and earning him an Oscar nomination and even a win. Marion Cottilard is fantastic in the time she has both displaying real menace and real emotion. Perhaps though the great performance that will most likely be ignored come awards time is that of Cillian Murphy who makes his character really work and shows again why he is one of the most reliable actors working today. Joseph Gordon Levitt, Tom Hardy and Ellen Page also provide great supporting performances. There is not one weak link in what is the best cast of the year.
Overall while you can compare Inception to Memento, The Dark Knight, The Matrix or even Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind it is ultimately its own unique film and experience, one of the characters remarks that after dreaming reality isn’t enough well after Inception normal films just aren’t enough. If there is a more complex, interesting, engaging and technically stunning film this year I will be surprised. It is a film that demands and deserves multiple viewings to make sense of what is a very confusing but very thrilling time at the cinema. Only repeat viewings and time will tell whether Inception goes on to be a masterpiece however to quote the film it shows summer blockbusters and films in general that “You mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger darling”
One Sentence Summary: Original and thrilling, Inception is the best film of 2010 so far.
9/10
By Michael Dalton
Inception centers on a man named Cobb (Leonardo Dicaprio) who is an Extractor, what is that exactly? Well along with a few others he is able to go into peoples minds through their dreams and access their secrets. With this skill he has become a thief and a man in demand for many powerful corporations. When Saito a very powerful businessman approaches him however, he has another concept in mind…Inception. Inception is the act of planting an idea into somebody’s mind and is seemingly an impossible task. However if Cobb is able to pull off this job then he will be able to see his children again, however his deep personal issues as well as the complication of the task make this the toughest job of Cobbs career.
Christopher Nolan is the filmmaker who gave us Memento a noir thriller with a protagonist suffering from short term memory loss and a backwards narrative, as well as The Dark Knight a summer blockbuster spectacle with epic action as well as the performances, emotion and intelligence of a crime drama. Inception could be described the perfect marriage of these two films, it has a complex, multi layered plot that demands your constant attention as well as some of the most spectacular action sequences and special effects of the year. To say Inception is a confusing film is an understatement, miss a minute at your peril as this is a film that is constantly aksing the audience to keep up and pay attention. Rarely in a film of this size is there such a masterful story that requires the audience to actually think with it being uncompromising in its complexity. Basically make sure you go the loo before the film starts. However the thinking doesn’t stop once the end credits roll, Nolan has given us a film that will leave audiences talking and theorizing long after the final scene. If Nolan doesn’t receive a best original screenplay nomination at the Oscars it is a crime as he has delivered a masterful ideas driven, complex, engaging, character driven summer blockbuster about dreams, death, faith and explosions.
Inception not only succeeds on a storytelling level but as a technical spectacle. Jaw dropping special effects in the dream sequences are matched with masterful direction and incredibly skilled editing as the film reaches its climax. Hans Zimmer also deserves credit for his score as well as Wally Pfister for his cinematography as both aid the tone and feel of the film. However a great story and superb craftsmanship would be wasted if the performances don’t work and rest assured they do. Leonardo Dicaprio gives perhaps the performance of his career as Cobb rivaling his work in Shutter Island and earning him an Oscar nomination and even a win. Marion Cottilard is fantastic in the time she has both displaying real menace and real emotion. Perhaps though the great performance that will most likely be ignored come awards time is that of Cillian Murphy who makes his character really work and shows again why he is one of the most reliable actors working today. Joseph Gordon Levitt, Tom Hardy and Ellen Page also provide great supporting performances. There is not one weak link in what is the best cast of the year.
Overall while you can compare Inception to Memento, The Dark Knight, The Matrix or even Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind it is ultimately its own unique film and experience, one of the characters remarks that after dreaming reality isn’t enough well after Inception normal films just aren’t enough. If there is a more complex, interesting, engaging and technically stunning film this year I will be surprised. It is a film that demands and deserves multiple viewings to make sense of what is a very confusing but very thrilling time at the cinema. Only repeat viewings and time will tell whether Inception goes on to be a masterpiece however to quote the film it shows summer blockbusters and films in general that “You mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger darling”
One Sentence Summary: Original and thrilling, Inception is the best film of 2010 so far.
9/10
By Michael Dalton
This trailer was taken from: “Inception” Trailer 2 HD (Video). May 10, 2010. Retrieved July 23, 2010 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66TuSJo4dZM