Inception Review

There are many types of “great films” in this world. Now, one thing all people must know is that no single film HAS to excel in all aspect of film-making in order to achieve greatness. Take for an example, Neil Blomkamp's “District 9” (a film that I seem to come to time and time again to point out what movies do right or wrong): its greatness stems from its utter originality, surprisingly relevant political allegory, and its central character's arch. However, “District 9” can hardly be considered “perfect”. Its subtext isn't rammed up your butt through every single second of screen-time and its shaky-cam cinematography doesn't always create the effect it was looking for. But then, there also films that can be classified as “perfect” and therefore achieve greatness. Case and point, “No Country for Old Men.” Its editing, acting, and cinematography are all used in tandem to create what is known as a “perfect film.” A film so meticulously crafted that every second feels (and is) relevant to its story and subtext. So then, where does “Inception” come into play here? “Inception” is the former film. A film that isn't flawless (however, whatever flaws it may have are not very major) but nevertheless achieves greatness through audacity and originality.

Explaining the premise of “Inception” is about all one can do when introducing a stranger to its plot and story. I say this because already with the beginning of the film there so many pieces of knowledge must be imparted so that it may be understood that trying to explain would be exhaustive and mostly futile effort. Suffice it to say, Leonardo DiCaprio plays a convict with the resources and ability to enter people's dreams and withdraw secrets and valuable information. Having fled from the U.S. Authorities he now does small jobs utilizing his illegal talents until a big-shot CEO named Saito (Ken Watanabe) offers him the chance of a lifetime: a cleared record and a flight back home to his children. However, getting will not be any simple task, as Saito is asking of DiCaprio's character something that never has been done before: he wants him to commence “inception” upon a business competitor of his. The implanting of an idea in one's mind through one's dreams and subconscious.

From the standpoint of understanding the film entirely, there are two ways to view “Inception's” mind-bending nature. The first is say that it blindsides us by not making sure we understand all the concept's involved in the process of inception. The other is to appreciate the fact that it is a thinking-man's piece of cinema. Now when I say this, I do not mean it in the sense of feeling smug and exclusive once we figure out how all the parts work, merely that it is a more thoughtful and though-provoking film than most. After-all, all one needs to do to understand the film is pay close attention to the second act (where they pretty much give the audience a crash-course on how to navigate a person's mind.) So then, what makes “Inception” so thoughtful? “Inception” deals with difficult concepts very well. Using DiCaprio's tragic character as the centerpiece, the film exhibits how emotions can often hinder calm logical thinking and in the worst cases, obscure our perception of reality.

Where many may find the film to fail most, is in engaging us emotionally with each character. Now it's not as if we do not care about the supporting cast, it's just that this causes DiCaprio to have to be the emotional conduit and anchor for the audience. There is a scene where one of the characters is at the brink of losing their grasp on reality, but Nolan does not acknowledge this enough to make us feel the risk. However, every second DiCaprio is on screen we feel some sort of emotion, whether is be suspense, stress, sadness, or whatever else DiCaprio is getting us to feel. He is a master manipulator of human emotion.

In addition to being a complex, mind-bending and emotionally satisfying story, “Inception” is also blockbuster and therefore must have action. However, its not standard so it doesn't need a “District 9” surprise to keep us watching. Cleverly using the world of a dream and the tenuous grasp on reality it is therefore allowed to have as well as correlating what happens to ones body in the dream world to what happens to one in reality during a dream “Inception” manages the make a one on one fight-scene in a hallway the second coolest thing I've seen in movie this year. And even when the action becomes standard, we're already so engaged that its riveting to observe.

A deft blend of emotion, action, and mind-bending complexity “Inception” manages to make itself the best film of summer 10' and quite possibly the best film all year. A truly original and important piece of cinema that must be seen. (and thumbs up on not buying into the 3-D trend)