[16/20]

Rating: 8/10 (16 April 2019)

'Inception', is one of the best overrated films ever.
It is one of my mates favourite films. A couple of years ago, we were chatting and he mentioned 'Inception' naming it as his 4th favourite film ever (his top three being all three 'Lord of the Rings' films). I wasted no time. I was straight down to HMV, picked up a copy, caught the bus home and threw it into the machine...
I liked it. I didn't have a lot of complaints about it. But the one thing I never have, was loved 'Inception'. The next day, I went back into school and told him my opinion... I said "I don't think it's one of the best films ever made".
And then he said... "you didn't understand it, did you?"
Nope. That's not what happened. I understood it perfectly. I heard Chinese whispers that it was a film you benefit from on the rewatch, so that night, I gave it another go. I enjoyed it exactly the same as before, not learning anything new about the narrative. My opinion was unchanged.
There are some popular films that I don't love. I have never really been a fan of 'Leon: The Professional', but I have never been quite able to put my finger on why. With 'Inception', I knew immediately why I didn't love it... the characters.
'Inception' is currently lurking around the number #10 spot on IMDb's top 250. If you look at the films above it, you'll notice something. 'The Shawshank Redemption' is a tale of well... redemption and what it means to be free. 'The Godfather' is a tale of a young man who slowly becomes a ruthless gang lord for the meaning of family. Even Christopher Nolan's previous effort 'The Dark Knight' has a legitimate claim to a place on the list, taking apart the tortured mind of a campy superhero, the toll his lifestyle takes on him and the effect it has on the city around him.
'Inception' is a well made film, visually it's stunning... and the concept just about works. I particularly like the fact that Nolan used special effects whenever absolutely necessary, using practical effects that lazy filmmakers would otherwise avoid. But for a film to be a masterpiece, a true masterpiece, it also has to present us with characters that go on a journey.
Now, I know what you're thinking. "This guy clearly hasn't seen the film. Dom Cobb is a brilliant character! He went on a journey! He is a tortured mind! His backstory is tragic!".
There are ideas, and then there's execution. I can see where Nolan was trying to go with the character of Cobb, and I can see what fans of 'Inception' see within the character of Cobb. But I would still argue that the character doesn't go anywhere. Sure, he gets a chance to see his kids at the end... but that's not a journey. That's a moment within a journey. Cobb kept saying "if we get this job, I will get the chance to see my kids again" and yet I have never understood why. I have seen the film about six or seven times now and I still don't know why this is the case, Nolan's writing didn't show us why, it just told us.
The thing is, that Cobb is one of the most interesting characters in the whole film. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's 'Arthur' is perhaps the weakest of the ensemble (even though he is the focus of the films most thrilling sequence), his character is literally just there for exposition. Practically every line he says in the film is describing what's going on. And then there's Ellen Page, she goes nowhere to.
Tom Hardy was quite fun though. Sure, there's still no development, but he did give the film it's much needed shot of wit. However, I would argue that the best aspect of this film, comes from the most underapreciated actor of our generation... Cillian Murphy. Both the writing and performance of his character actually give this film its backbone, it's just a shame that Nolan keeps pushing him to the sidelines, instead wishing to focus more on the uninteresting concept of the film itself.
Don't get me wrong, I liked the concept of the film. The execution is never terrible, it's just missing a little something. As of recently, however, I think I have identified how this film can be improved... by not making it a film at all. It should have been a TV show.
Hear me out! I have two main complaints about this film... 1) The characters don't have enough to do, they are merely puppets to drive the special effects forward; 2) The first half of this film is just a lazy exposition dump.
Both of these problems can be rectified with a slow burn narrative. A TV show would have given us more time with the characters. The revelations of Cobb's past could have been spread over a season rather than awkwardly crammed near to one another. It also would have given us more time with the supporting cast, perhaps given Arthur a little backstory would have saved him from being an exposition machine and Tom Hardy could have been that Spike-esque character who was every bodies favourite.
The format would also soften the blow of the exposition dumb. There is a solid half hour-forty minutes of this film, just explaining the rules of entering dreams. This was a necessary decision within a two and a half hour film, but it just constantly feels like you're being whacked in the face by a fish for 30 minutes. Nolan was like "dreams do this... they also do this... and this... and this... and this...". I'm 17 years old Chris! I don't need to be spoon fed the rules any more, the rules should have been disguised within the narrative.
Of course, if 'Inception' did follow the TV show format we probably wouldn't have got DiCaprio, Tom Hardy or Michael Caine involved. The special effects probably would have been less impressive to, and Hans Zimmer's sensational score would have been noticeably absent to. The problem is that these were the best aspects of the film. So for the characters to be great, you're gonna have to sacrifice everything that made the film good in the first place. Which is probably not an option.
Nevertheless, I would argue that Nolan made the best possible film he could have made with the concept that he had. It's a film that I would recommend everyone experience at least once because visually is just so damn impressive. And if you love this film, if it's one of your favourite films ever, I won't argue with you. But in my eyes, it's not a masterpiece. That word is sacred and should only be awarded to films that do something sensational and change the lives of everyone that watches it.
I understand the narrative of 'Inception' perfectly, and I understand why the modern generation rates it so highly... I just don't agree with the reasons why the modern generation rate it so highly. [16/20]