A lot to take in...definitely one you'll need to see more than once

Rating: 9/10 (7 September 2010)

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning
It seems dreams are more than just something in the mind, rather they're an alternative form of reality where the boundaries of time and space can be expanded far beyond that of the 'real world.' With this new knowledge to everyone's mind, Agent Cobb (Leonardo Di Caprio) exists as a specialist in extracting information from people's dreams- but now he's been presented with a new challenge- implanting an original thought in a subject's mind to shift a balance of power in the real world. With the help of gifted student Ariadne (Ellen Page) and a team of reliable specialists, he sets about his task...but as he does, he's forced to confront a dreadful aspect of his own past that refuses to lie dormant and threatens to rise up and exact a vengeance of it's own.
That, at least, after two viewings, is as best I can make out the plot to Inception. It seems to have topped most other people's 'greatest films ever made' lists, but it has the accolade from me of being the only film since...I don't know when, that I've had to pay to see twice at the cinema. The sheer intelligence and complexity of the plot seems to have wowed everyone, even if the most academic amongst us would struggle to call it anything less than deeply confusing and far fetched. The problem I found was there was so much to take in, you ended up paying so much attention to it all than actually enjoying very much. That's why, rather than hailing it as the greatest thing since sliced bread like everyone else, I prefer Christopher Nolan on more straight-forward, delivering ground like The Dark Knight and Insomnia. He seems like he's on some mad mission to blow everyone away with this one, making a lengthy, brain numbing assault on the senses that refuses to know it's limitations. There's actually staggeringly little 'cool'about the film, except among elitist film snobs and Mensa specialists. It is, undeniably, a brilliant film...but maybe it's just so brilliant in it's own way, that it fails to be entertaining in any other way.
In the lead role, Di Caprio further cements his 'Hollywood royalty' staple, with some now hailing him as the new De Niro. He has a lively supporting cast (with much less to do!) in the shape of Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bronson star Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe, Tom Berenger, Pete Postlethwaite, Michael Caine and Lukas Haas. Obviously a script with enough in it to entice a lot of top talent.
One of the most mind blowing films you will ever see, Inception is certainly not something you can switch your brain off to, but if you're up for using your noggin, this could reveal a lot about you. ****