Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 148 minutes
Release Date: 22 July 2010
http://www.inceptionmovie.com.au
Inception is a sci fi/fantasy action thriller written, produced and directed by Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight). The film centres on Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) who is able to enter the dreams of others, with the help of technology, and create the visual framework which allows him to manipulate the dream scenario in order to access the recesses of their minds and steal information. This time however he is set a challenge by Saito (Ken Watanabe) to plant ideas rather than retrieve them, a task that has never supposedly been done before. Saito’s “inception” target is Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy, Batman Begins) son of his rival, business mogul Maurice (Pete Postlethwaite) who is close to death. Cobb grudgingly accepts the assignment with the promise by Saito that he can reunite him with his children if he suceeds. In order to complete the mission he has to assemble a team to assist him and his right hand man and researcher Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). They recruit Eames (Tom Hardy) who is able to change his identity in the dream world and Yusuf (Dileep Rao) as Pharmacologist in charge of creating drugs for their dream inducing state. On the recommendation of Cobb’s mentor and father in law Miles (Michael Caine) he hires and trains Ariadne (Ellen Page, Juno) a talented architect to construct the complex dream framework to ensure its realism to the inceptee otherwise it risks deconstructing and the invasion may be uncovered. However as Adriadne trains within Cobb’s dreams she discovers a secret that he has been trying to hide which may threaten the whole operation.
Finally a film that offers something somewhat original amongst the current milieu of remakes, comic book heroes and perpetual sequels. Nolan has demonstrated that he is a fine director with his previous efforts on The Dark Night and Memento. He has been working on the script for nine years and it shows with the level of complexity, multi layered and emotional engagement that is brought to the screen. Clearly Nolan has an obsession with the subconscious mind, dreams and perceptions of reality and alternate states and his research in these areas give this film some credibility and believability as demonstrated in the scene where DiCaprio after being pushed into a bathtub of water whilst dreaming incorporates this real stimuli into his dream as water floods the building he is in. There are a few minor problems with the opening 15 minutes posing a challenge to follow as it chops and changes from a dream within a dream and from one person’s dream to another which while clever may be difficult for some viewers to follow and may alienate them for the remainder of the film as they try and get a grip on whats going on. Filmed in six countries, the special effects and cinematography by Wally Pfister are highly effective in transporting you into the dream world.
DiCaprio is at his brilliant best and he just seems to get better with each film and there is obvious chemistry with on screen wife Mal (academy award winner Marion Cotillard) who also puts in a fine performance. There are no acting duds with great support from all the cast, particularly Tom Hardy who provides some nice levity to change the tone and pace. The level of layering makes it one of those films that you just want to see again in case you missed something the first time around and I can’t wait to do just that.
4.5/5 stars
More News
