Inception grows and spreads like a Virus

Inception, the latest piece of work from director Christopher Nolan will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire 2.5 hours of the show. Initially I was dubious.. EVERYBODY was raving about it and I was so sure I’d hate it.


The plot –  A team of dream raiders are able to infiltrate a person’s subconscious to not only steal their ideas, but even possibly plant one.

Leonardo DiCaprio, a.k.a  Cobb, the leader of some dream raiders including the very cool Joseph Gordon-Levitt are hired by Saito (Ken Watanabe) to see if they’re any good.

When Saito is satisfied with what he sees, he hires the team to enter the dreams of Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy), his corporate rival with the intent of planting an idea in his head that could topple Fischer’s business empire, and consequently Saito’s competition. Cobb hires a whiz kid architect, Ariadne (Ellen Page), to help design a multi-tiered dream world that will enable the team to implant an idea deep enough, to take root in the recesses of Fischer’s brain. A dream within a dream within a dream. 3 levels of mind f***.

When Cobb walks Ariadne (Ellen Page) through a dream, explaining the physics of the subconscious, city streets fold upwards and on top of one another in jaw-dropping fashion.

Of course there has to be some sappy love story in there somewhere, and it emerges in the form of Cobb’s ex-wife, Mal (Cotillard). As with most ex-wives, their sole intention is to terrorize and make the ex-partners life a living hell:P

What I disliked – well the love story of course between Cobb and Mal. I mean, sure he got to play a tragic-romantic figure in his scenes with Cotillard, scenes that contain high-octane emotional strength and all that jazz but did they really have to play it out that long?

Also, I wonder if Ellen Page realizes that she is getting dangerously close to being stereotyped as that “brainy” child-woman actress that she insists on playing over and over again.

The opening sequence where Cobb meets Saito for the first time was also lacking in impressive cinematography.

All photos via www dot filmofilia dot com

What I liked – the amazing fight sequence that occurred in the hotel in zero gravity. I used to think that Joseph Gordon-Levitt was a bit of a wuss but I tell ya, he really stole the show with his one man stunts against the odds. Very, very cool.

My other favourite guy in the show would be Cillian Murphy, an extraordinary actor. His portrayal of the emotionally scarred character Fischer looking for closure at his father’s death bed, was heart-wrenching (the annoying Cobb – Mal scenes just paled in comparison) and I felt this deserved more praise than the tragic-romantic figure we see in Cobb. For me, Cillian stole the show.

Finally credit to Nolan of course, who turned this show into a helluva trippy masterpiece- “an idea that takes root and grows and grows..” should make your hair stand on end.

Conclusion – Inception is a crazy labyrinth of visuals and dialog, and seriously if you cannot follow 20% of the movie, it’s because you are not suppose to. Half the fun of the film is trying to sort things out in your head after you’ve watched it. If movies are meant to transport you to another realm, make the impossible seem possible and leave you hankering for more, than Inception is all that and more. I suspect this film will be even better after a second viewing!

24 Comments

  • sc says:

    have yet to watch and heard so much about it already..must catch it by this week!

  • KY says:

    I think the relationship between Cobb & Mal is important in the overall story line though.

    end of the day it’s still a super awesome film 😀

  • Runaway Juno says:

    Yeah I’ve heard it is like crazy good. Is it? Hm.. I have to sort things out after watch. like the one with short term memory. What’s that called? Anyway. Worth to watch several time then.
    I don’t watch something to think about lately, but I gotta try this time.
    Thanks for the review girl! 🙂

  • Now I wonder who tweeted you non-stop for a week to go and see this???? Cough Cough.

    I felt the opposite of your synopsis.

    Personally these days I could not care who is in a film. I want a good story, and good acting. No more Twilight spam blighting out screens with generic balderdash.

    Inception is the first movie in over a decade that’s pushed the limits of the film world to new level.

    Not only is the story original, but the whole screenplay racks the the gentle world of everything is lovely in this world and will work out okay.

    Katheryn Bigelow tried this with Strange Days but ultimately failed to grasp the masses.

    Nolan, wrote this and directed it. If all of this is true (e.g. no ghost writers etc) then he’s made a modern day master piece.

    I sat and watched it in The Philippines where the audience sat visibly perturbed. It’s a movie that requires thought, and you will feel you brain having been exercise in the conception of daring to think outside the box.

    To those who don’t get it from it’s outset, please pick up a book and read. Expand your grey matter. Read Philip K. Dick, Orwell, Tolkien.

    On an ending note, I thought the special effects in the hotel were okay. There was one scene that I guarantee will look very CGI on the small screen. Why this was there, I don’t know.

    Perhaps Nolan needed to appease doubting film producers and distributors with a toned down version. In which case, I epically await the directors cut.

    And, hopefully enjoy another dimensional level to this historic movie.

    Dave

    (P.S. Do I qualify for the longest comment ever on C & C?)

    • cumi&ciki says:

      LOL, i said the show was good.. So which part are we not in synch? Oh, u mean the fight scene in zero gravity ah..? Ok .. Ok.. Yeah i cannot w8 for a part 2!

  • Sean says:

    i can vouch that it’s worth watching a second time! though it seems like there’ll always be ambiguity about many of the details (especially the darn ending!)

  • … but but but it’s not obvious at all (re. your reply to Sean).
    One moment I thought I saw it slow down but it was still spinning n spinning!
    (So very frustrating…. Makes me wish I could kidnap Christopher Nolan n make him tell me what is the answer! Haha…)

  • Is watching Inception more interesting than watching Conception? *cough cough*

  • Leo (thule) says:

    Sigh.. it seems that everyone is talking about Inception nowadays! Might miss this great movie though!

  • Liana says:

    One of the best movies I have seen in a long time! I was so happy to walk out of the theatre feeling like I finally got my moneys worth for once. The beginning was lacking a bit for me too but the rest of the film made up for it. Can Leo get some credit please!? oh and p.s.–can Cobb just get over Mal! It took way too long I agree haha

  • I wouldn’t mind getting mind fu***d by the movie again via DVD when it’s out. Can’t wait to see what movie extra bits they’ll put into it.

  • J2Kfm says:

    Truth be told, I was expecting slightly more than this. But all in all, aside from Toy Story 3, this may be the best movie this year.
    And not saying much. But Shutter Island was good.
    Nolan’s Dark Knight STILL is his best work to date. Period.

  • Huai Bin says:

    I watched it twice, have a couple of theories that I’m working on – first being Saito but not going to spoil it for the others.

    Memento is definately a great movie (but the greatest movie of all would be hands down, bar none Requiem for a Dream) but for the masses, Inception would be more accessible.

    Crap, not being condescending here, but a lot of people get confused watching Memento.

  • Thanks for this article. I understand better now why people are so impressed by this movie

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