Which reality are you experiencing?

Rating: 10/10 (19 July 2010)

Have you ever managed to remember the beginning of a dream? Somethings stated in this film were small but true statements. The bizarre things that happen in a dream only appear weird when you wake up. The mind is constantly justifying your mental image with reality.
In so saying, Christopher Nolan's 10 years in the making idea offers true science fiction with an all star ensemble cast which in my opinion is noteworthy in its self (I've always been of the opinion that you put too many stars in one movie it usually saturates it with personality conflicts that ooze onto the big screen and lessen the experience). The scope, both in depth and presentation show that it was loved and nursed from concept with just enough technology to create a world that would comfortably accommodated one foot in cold reality and one foot in womb of dream. The good thing is that you can appreciate the movie without intimately following the plot, the bad thing is that you can get very lost if you need to use the facilities. The use of dreams is not a new idea as a vehicle to present a story, I guess the closest thing that would compare to it for me would be "The Matrix". What Matrix misses though is, and rightfully so is humanity. Where Matrix is program driven, Inception is almost completely driven by primal needs and the vehicle that fuels it was developed by none other than the military. Once the tools to define and control the dream life of a human being fall into the hands of a special "underground" group of people, then we start seeing the dangers of manipulating the fabric of time and space. For DiCaprio's portrayal of Cobb with a dark secret and the mission/job he has been offered that would allow this dark secret to be at peace, the focus is set (and mind you, pay attention because it is easy to loose your perspective through the multiplicity of the story).
I am a baby boomer, and as such a person who see's retirement within reach have memories of shows like the original Mission Impossible. Inception follows the Mission Impossible time line closely: 1. You have a potential customer that has an interest in your product and you let him sample it. Out of this, he hires you to do a specific job. However, it goes further than you normally go - which is you are not just getting information willingly out of a target, but also implanting an idea so he believes in the end it is his own. the game is a-foot. 2. You assemble your team. You find an architect, an apothecary, a forger, weapons master... etc. 3. You find your best option for deploying your plan. 4. You initiate your plan. 5. You improvise as needs fit in adverse conditions. 6. You accomplish your goal. 7. You all depart with slight nods and smiles as you move on to bigger and better things.
I have seen this now twice, which for me was necessary; some things just didn't make sense to me at the start but came clear during a second sitting (2.5 hours long too... so don't drink all your water or eat all your popcorn in the first 30 minutes, or use the facilities during the movie). The only teaser I will part is that the ending justifies the job. Please, don't take children to this movie. It is dark, the music is repetitive and builds throughout the movie (reminded me almost of a 007 theme), there are lots of surprise explosions that are loud - I say this because some stupid 30 year old man bought an 8 month old infant to the theater and sat in the second row from the screen. My opinion he should have been locked up for his arrogant selfishness. This movie is also offered with D-Box motion seat signal which is kind of entertaining. We sat in the row in front of the D-Box section and the floor was constantly vibrating during loud sequences. The experience of this film for me was a 10. The plot was a 10. The acting was a 9 as was the music. The FX were seamless and a 9.
Another must see in the theater A-list. Enjoy. -B