Saw Inception again (in IMAX this time) and I was still riveted. The movie has so many layers that even upon a second viewing, I found myself on the edge of my seat. If you are looking for a movie that's not just mindless fare, go see Inception, I guarantee, you will not regret it.

 

Oh, I will...

If Gio says the show is shit, I'll most probably watch it. If he say show is gold/epic/awesome, I will avoid it like hell...

 

Eh, it was a very well-executed movie, but the idea wasn't nearly as original as everyone claims it is. A well-known Russian author (Sergei Lukyanenko) has been exploring similar themes to this movie for quite some time.

 

I don't think anyone is arguing that it's a new idea per se - the concept of a dream within a dream isn't new, nor in the most technical sense is the idea of trying to 'feed' someone an idea - the most obvious that comes to mind is hypnotism.

But putting the two together and more importantly, not just as a discussion but as a full film... well, it's a massive breath of fresh air in a world where there are more films and games with large numbers at the end of them than anything at all original. The film was fun to watch, had cool special effect, but didn't let either of those things interfere with the crux of it simply being an awesome story.

 

Firstly, I'd like to say that I really did enjoy this movie.

But.

Spoiler

My first major gripe is that the plot is not convoluted enough.

Inception seems to have a very complex story, but if you break it down, it really doesn't.

The main plot is a cross between a con movie and a dream movie. Once this becomes clear - all the very familiar elements start to emerge.(see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heist_film)

The Client is Saito(Ken Watanabe), the Master Con-man is Dom Cobb(Leo di cap) , the Fixer is Arthur( J Gordon Levitt). The Mark is one Robert Fischer(Cillian Murphy). The New Girl is Adriadne (Ellen page), the Inside Man is Eames(Tom Hardy), the Driver is Yusuf(Dileep Rao).
The Woman is Molly(Marion Cotillard)

The problem is, once you know this is a heist movie - it becomes immediately obvious how the plot is going to go. We know there's going to be a Plan, and there's going to be a Job. It's only a question of whether everyone will survive, and whether they'll succeed. And in a movie like this - where the unknowns are half the fun - this is no fun at all.
This problem is further acerbated by the script - that makes several plot points painfully clear - so that mysterious portions of the story are illuminated all too clearly.

The movie starts with a decades old Saito, meeting Dom - leaving us to wonder how they got this way, but all too soon - when Saito is shot - Dom warns us - 'you could remain years, decades in limbo' and that mystery gets cleared right up. (Though, this a bit of a stretch to rationalise, I may just be being overly critical here)

Too much about the script is too clear. I can almost imagine the anxious producers reducing Nolan to tears as they do their best to make sure that no movie goer gets too confused by the story and illuminate everything to perfection.
The thing is - the clarity of the story is secondary. If we had unexplained transitions, going deeper into the dreams, while it would have been a bit harder to figure out - I would have enjoyed the exercise of figuring the story out more.

Early on we're introduced to the Science of dreams and the Dark Past of Dom. But beyond these two, there not one new element in the entire rest of the film. I would have appreciated an aside into how Fischer's subconcious ended up trained - maybe a character from his subconcious. Or a complication somewhere - maybe a death (other than Saito, who we already know will survive).

Frankly, any twist anywhere, other than the one we expect all along - Molly - which can't happen anywhere other than the last level of dreaming and at the final climax of the film.
And since Molly's story is already told earlier - we already suspect Dom must have some other deeper secret.

There are no open ended characters here in this movie.
Everybody does the one thing throughout the movie
Dom is guilty , Molly is grim, Arthur is dutyfull, Adriadne is green, Fischer is innocent, Saito is dead (or dying. Or trying not to die). And Yusuf is driving. No character does anything new at all.

Ultimately there are only two mysteries left open in the film - the cause of Dom's guilt - which when you think about it, becomes obvious is because he was complicit in Molly's death ('thankyou', he says to page - 'for not asking if I did [kill her]')
And whether his kids, and Molly, and thus the reality as the audience knows it - is even real - which is a question actually left open at the end of the film.

All in all, this movie is like a maze. Intricate, well made, well artificed. But once you know it's a maze, it's hard to work up the enthusiasm to grind your way through to the end, since it's actually a very simple maze to begin with.

It was still fun to watch though.

 

Went into this with pretty low expectations (I thought the trailers were lame) but was pleasantly surprised. A good movie, very enjoyable, with good characters (Ellen Page = hotness). I'm constantly surprised by how good an actor Leonardo DiCaprio is. I felt the ending was a tad predictable but it was satisfying nonetheless. I also felt that it was a tiny bit too long, but that might have just been because I needed to piss from about an hour in.

That said, I don't think it was anywhere near as deep as people seem to think it was. You've only got two "talking points", really: your classic Cartesian doubt - done to death - and the recursive pushing and popping that makes the structure of the film. But there isn't really much to say about that, other than to note its existence.

 

Maybe, but in combination with Leo's makeup and the constant attempts to top the ending of Scarface it fails. Add in the greased back hair effect and the 1950s quotient nearly reached Preps v. Greasers levels. The movie didn't do a good job making me care about any of its protagonists (or the 'antagonist,' for that matter.) The movie lacked depth and once the "these special effects are bitchin'" feeling wore off I was left with the feeling that the 30 pages of Ibn Sina's metaphysics I could have slogged through in the allotted time would have fucked my mind better, been cheaper, and wouldn't have required me to sit in a theater filled with idiots.

Spoiler

The movie gives itself away in the first 10 minutes (Saito is old and then he's young), and since its a dream movie you already know that there's time dilation involved in dreaming. You don't even need to worry about the protagonists you are supposed to worry about since no other character's life is ever threatened in a way you doubt their ability to get out of. The "Mr. Charles never works except this time" gambit was also a predictable plot element in a "master says do not, only master can do" kung-fu movie kind of way. Add in the fact that the entire thing maps perfectly onto Joseph Campbell's monomyth without any substantial alterations and you have a boring story.

 

You've really got nothing to talk about concerning this movie, except that it was a good movie. Unlike almost every other movie ever made.

What really was unsurprising was the few people who didn't like the movie or who did but were just too good for it: Taure, Giovanni and Kalantha. The same three pretentious faggots, who regardless of what you're discussing, know how to make you regret even bringing the subject up (whatever it may be). Nothing is good enough for these idiots. There's only one part to play for them and it involves donning the disguise of an asshole pseudo-intellectual who just received his poli sci degree. And on a Harry Potter forum.

Why don't you take a page out of Perspicacity's notebook and stop being a douchefuck?

 

Spoiler

Would it even matter if Cobb was still in the dream? He's a professional after all. I'm sure if he was in a dream at the end of the movie he'd figure it out eventually, either from re-finding his totem or just noticing something is wrong.

Also my friend who I saw the movie with told me that at the end, when he is leaving the airport, all the people inside were looking at Cobb (like how the shades look at the dreamer). Is this true? And if it is does it confirm that he is in a dream?

 

Spoiler

I don't really remember that happening, the only people who give him a backwards glance were those who were apart of the team. And if it were a dream he would have had to change something/call attention to himself before the shades take notice of him. Anyway, for we know, at the very least, Cobb is at the level he started which is all that really matters anyway.

Anyway it was a really good movie, certainly worth the money paid for it.

 

The movie was fucking awesome and a total mindfuck. That is all.

 

Spoiler

They weren't really staring at him. It was just the usual crowd around the entrance waiting for friends/relatives. Staring at the entrance = appearing to stare at him.

 

Inception - Time (Redone)

Simply amazing. I am still looking for the sped-up version of Time that plays at the end of the movie and with more passion.... It's just not the same as the one found on the Soundtrack released.

 

I found a pretty amusing Inception parody. I'll just leave this here.

Edit: Blaise, I actually saw that one right after I posted.

 

I'll see your parody, and raise you another.


BRAAAAAAAAP!

 

Something I hadn't picked up on. Not a parody, but a music comparison. Cunning.

 

Just saw this in imax.

FUCK

I don't have a single bad thing to say about the movie. I've hated DiCaprio ever since I saw the Titanic, but he has come a very long way since then and I was impressed. Best movie I have seen in a long time, but I don't really want to compare.

 

Great movie, easily one of the best this year, but really predictable. When I was watching trailers, I wasn't entirely sure what it will be all about, but after 30 minutes of the movie I was sure of ending (especially unsure part of it). Not to mention part of it was Nolan fault, because he made mistake with opening scene. It didn't add anything to plot aside of spoilering the ending.

 

I loved the movie, it kept me at the edge of my seat even the second time that I watched it. I'm planning on seeing it another time just to clear up some doubts.

Di Caprio surprises me, he really knows how to pick his roles and he has come from "pretty boy" to great actor very quickly.