INCEPTION

INCEPTION

rated PG13

Art---> ****
Heart-> **1/2
Mind--> ****
Fun---> ***1/2

Dreams on film have always fascinated me. I think it’s because movies and dreams have so much in common. The myriad of complex subconscious characteristics that define them, from psychology to personality, are most effectively rendered cinematically. Both dreams and movies can transport you into another reality that looks and feels authentic. And when you embrace a film for the first time, you are in effect entering someone else’s dream.

With INCEPTION, an incredibly smart--scratch that--an astoundingly brilliant film from Writer/Director Christopher Nolan, that's the whole idea. A master of psychological-noir thrillers, Nolan's track record is spotless. With THE DARK KNIGHT, that Godfather-caliber superhero tale under his belt, you would think the director had peaked. That is not the case.

INCEPTION is so good in fact, Nolan needn’t make another film for the rest of his life. It is a career-topping achievement and only the anticipation for his third Batman film could make us want for more.

If Freud had directed THE MATRIX...

Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a high-profile thief; part of a team contracted by those in power to steal secrets. Not from computer networks or vaults, but from the target’s mind. He enters their dreams and uses his extensive knowledge of psychology and the subconscious to extract the information he seeks. His team consists of a logistics man (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), an undercover agent (Tom Hardy), and an expert chemist (Dileep Rao). Their client (Ken Watanabe) has hired them to penetrate a corporate rival’s mind.

But Cobb isn't doing this for the money. He longs to return home to the U.S. and be reunited with his children. But complications surrounding his relationship with his wife (Marion Cotillard) have thus far prevented him from doing so. And this job holds the key to his reconciliation. Cobb enlists the help of an architectural student (Ellen Page) to construct the “levels” of a dream landscape so he can successfully navigate through them and achieve their client's objective: the planting of an idea into the mind of corporate prodigy Robert Fisher (Cillian Murphy) that will convince him to shift the balance of power. The trick is to make him think the idea is his own.

INCEPTION is not an easy film to settle into. There are lots of errant strands to piece together amidst all the confusion. But as you collect these items, you start constructing this world along with the characters. Lines of dialogue that carry intended weight hang in your mind until they are repeated later, adding another level of meaning. Then they are brought back again, firmly cemented with context and purpose. It truly is a puzzle, as intricate and complex as a three-dimensional optical illusion.

This is no lazy summer night at the movies. With a run time of two and a half hours, INCEPTION offers a lot to take in and process. (A friendly suggestion: skip the large soda :-) And with such cinematic heft, the last act might seem somewhat burdonsome and overplotted, but that’s because it requires all the strands you've been given to be assembled and contextualized.

The performances are as cold and calculated as the movie itself. DiCaprio in particular shines with street-cred grittiness as a flawed and mournful thief. I've waited a long time for a film where I can forget Leo's movie star baggage, and this would be it. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's straight arrow and Ellen Page's cool confidence carry their weight, rounded out superbly by the rest of this precision-engineered cast. The technical aspects are nearly flawless: cinematography, editing, sound design, and visual effects, making INCEPTION a film-lover's dream as well.

Echoes of THE MATRIX are unmistakable, as are nods to 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND, and even the JAMES BOND films. Also, I can’t help thinking what this year’s poor remake of A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET might have been with Nolan at the helm.

If there are any slights I would make against the film (and it pains me to do so), it would have to be the total lack of spirituality from the equation. It seems the only one left out of the cast is God. There is a hint of it in Cobb’s line that, “genuine inspiration can’t be faked,” but without the sense of eternity on the line, INCEPTION misses a chance to elevate the mortal, psychological and emotional stakes to the hilt. And that does weaken the film a bit. There is also a slight jab at the monopoly of energy corporations (an expected potshot), but it’s mostly background information to make the plot relevant in the modern world.

INCEPTION is a complex, involving, psychological masterwork that deserves a second viewing, as well as an Oscar for Best Picture of the year. I wouldn't dream of anything less.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED