Inception

To dream the impossible dream, Inception the planting of an idea in ones subconscious so that they believe that they came up with the idea themselves. It is thought to be impossible, to complicated, no one can do it. Will Cobbs crack team of “dream-hackers” be able to perform the impossible, or will the weight of their own subconscious destroy them from within.

What I Liked:
I will make no bones about it, I absolutely loved this film. From the plot, to the characters, to the settings, to the pacing, the whole thing is nearly pitch perfect the height of astoundingly good film making and storytelling. Since that is a bit vague I will continue. The draw of the film that the trailers pushed was a visual feast, cities bending on themselves, streets exploding like popcorn. While there are some spectacular set pieces throughout the film most of these are contained within a very specific section. However when the visual effects (which are kept at a low ebb on the back burner for most of the film) are in full effect they are absolutely stunning. When buildings crumble into the ocean, when freak storms appear, even when the whole world turns on its side, your eyes are wide open drinking in every detail. I found myself totally absorbed in the story, always eager and ready for more. However what you quickly realize is that it is not the visuals that have drawn you in, its the plot and the main character that hold your attention. Inception quickly reveals itself to be a very character driven piece, as the audience delves deeper into the subconscious of Cobbs self destructive illusions. Cobb is a rare treat for a character, one that is very well written, and well rounded, you like the man in spite of his flaws. The other character we get to know incredibly well is the mark, Cillian Murphy whose dreams the team are hijacking, who is a wonderful character to watch as he grows from out of his fathers shadow. The plot is a heist plot when looked at in the simplest terms, Cobb gathers a team, point man, forger, chemist and architect, the first two being immediately identifiable for those of you who watch heist films But it is so much more than a simple heist film, the most immediate analogy for me is Dune (the book, not the crappy movies) which always talks about “plans with plan, circles with in circles” or something to that effect. The plot is immensely complex, yet easy to follow along with and the tension it builds as things grow increasingly worse will have you on the edge of you seat. It is damn fine story telling and Christopher Nolan should be commended for juggling so many complex plot points and weaving them together into something that is easy to follow and emotionally charged. The cast did an excellent job of bringing their characters to life, each one has a personality and while most are in the background you know that Cobb is not doing this alone. With his usual strong technical execution, wonderful characters and excellent plot Christopher Nolan has created a truly great film to watch.

What I Didn't Like:
I have to say something here so lets pick up some of the nitty gritty shall we? In terms of the cast of extra characters, most of them are pretty shallow, there for one purpose. This is mostly because of the characterizations done with Cobb and Murphy which are very rich. In terms of the plot there were a few niggles for me, one fairly obvious one being; where do these guys keep pulling their money from? It is clear that they have some deep pockets, but if the shadowy corporation is after them, how is it that they are not strapped for cash (obviously this is negated later in the film) when they are on the run? The other thing I didn't like was the time dilation between the two “kicks” (used to wake the dreamers). The characters estimate that the time between these “kicks” is about 3 minutes for the first layer, yet the actions of within that time frame should have taken way longer than that. The time sent on the first “kick” was double this time yet we hardly see any of it, yes it is an effect of time dilation in film but casts a shadow over the scene as we have expected the second kick to occur about two or three times before it does.

In Conclusion:
As I stated before this is film making and storytelling at its height and the reason I like seeing films in theaters, they are larger than life and wrap you into their world. I must say that I particularly love films and stories in general that and like this, with complex characters, plot twists and excellent writing. These types of stories inspire me to work harder at my own works, to reach for (and dare I hope to one day surpass) such excellent storytelling and execution. Christoper Nolan has proven that he is one of Hollywood's best directors and this is one of the years best films. Everyone should see it, it is a film that will no doubt keep you entertained and it is officially one of my all time favorite movies. Go see it now.