A dream of a movie

Rating: 9/10 (23 July 2010)

Be warned: this film has one of the most complicated plots that you'll ever encounter in moviedom. But be advised: this work is one of the most inventive and thrilling that you'll ever encounter on the screen. From the opening seconds to the closing seconds and everything in between, this is a movie that constantly engages with no 'downtime' at all, so you cannot afford to doze for a moment - and you won't want to do so. This is "Total Recall" on steroids - and some.
First, that plot. This is a world in which it is possible for trained operatives to enter the dreams of others and gain access to their most private secrets - a process called extraction - but, in this case, a team is required to enter a subject's dream state in order to implant an idea - the inception of the title. Except it's not that simple. The storyline takes us into a dream within a dream within a dream and even down to somewhere called limbo and, in the climatic third of the film, there are actually three narratives progressing in parallel.
Now, why it works - and so brilliantly. It's all down to the British Christopher Nolan who has already impressed us with his directorial talents on "Memento", "Insomnia", "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight". Here he is writer, producer and director and the result is a truly original and immensely assured work that is as entertaining as it is challenging. Nolan has created a dreamworld with a set of rules - so each level requires one team member to be 'awake' - and devices - such as 'the kick' to pull you out of the dream and the 'totem' which tells you whether you are still in a dream or not.
It cost a ton - something like $170M - to make, but the money is on the screen with some stunning special effects, most notably some brilliant city-shaping scenes set in Paris. The whole thing was shot in six countries on four continents. And it is populated by a range of talented actors of varied provenance.
Central to the whole thing working is Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb, the troubled leader of the inception crew. It's a pleasure to see Ken Watanabe from "The Last Samurai" as the Japanese commissioner of the operation. Britain's Tom Hardy is charming as the roguish team operative Eames. The diminutive but ever so cute Ellen Page does not have the demanding role that she had in "Juno" but brings architectural design skills to the team as Ariadne. And this is before one mentions Cillian Murphy, Marion Cotillard, Tom Berenger and even cameos by Michael Caine and Pete Postelthwaite. Nolan gives his characters meaningful names, most obviously with Ariadne, a character in Greek mythology who possesses the key to a labyrinth.
Rarely have I left a cinema (I was at the British Film Institute's IMAX screen in London) so convinced that I wanted to see the film again, both to better understand the complexities of the plot and to enjoy once more the dazzling performance that is "Inception".