Would you even dream of skipping this heady, tantalizing, brilliant film, movie fans? I say no way on earth

Rating: 10/10 (18 July 2010)

Cobb (Leonard DiCaprio) has an interesting "job" in the near future. If someone wants to beat out the competition in business, they hire Cobb to infiltrate the competitor's dream cycle and steal his or her's inventive ideas. Whew! This is such a complicated strategy that Cobb has a sidekick (Joseph Gordon Levitt) to help him in his work. Now a Japanese corporate giant (Ken Watanabe) wants desperately to destroy his Rupert Murdoch-like rival's son (Cillian Murphy) but has doubts on whether Cobb can work his evil strategies. Therefore, Cobb pushes the envelope. The dream stealer assures the Asian strongman that he can perform "inception", that is, he can plant a destructive idea into the rival's brain, during an elaborate dreamscape, and the man will bring himself down. Once again, whew! But, with the stakes so high, Cobb has to gather more assistants, including architect Ariadne (Ellen Page), a male expert on sleep-inducing drugs, and so on. These folks, willing to help, all warn Cobb, however, that failure is likely, for no one has truly been successful at inception before. Ah, but, that's the secret, for someone has and its Cobb. Complicating matters is Cobb's own nightmares about his ex-wife (Marion Cotillard) who not only committed suicide but made it look like Cobb had murdered her. Thus, the dream stealer hasn't seen his two children in months, as he is on the run and can't re-enter the United States. As part of the deal, if Cobb's plans for inception work, he will get a clean slate. Will he be able to deliver? This is a tantalizing film, very heady stuff, that is extremely hard to summarize but which rivets the viewer as all outstanding movies can. Part of its greatness lies in the terrific cast. DiCaprio, fresh out of two fantastic performances in Revolutionary Road and Shutter Island, completes the trilogy with another knockout turn here. He's always had "the goods" but his youthful appearance and teeny bopper fans interfered with directors taking him seriously. No more. Cotillard, too, is mesmerizing, for she is beautiful, voluptuous and so, so talented. The rest of the crew is also terrific, with special words of praise for Watanabe, Murphy and, in a very small role, Micheal Caine. The only cast member that seems slightly miscast is Page, but, hey, she makes it work, with a wit and spark that resembles Robert Downey, Jr., pint-sized. But, in addition to the well-chosen cast, the film has very few weaknesses. The story (by writer/director Christopher Nolan), is superb, although complicated, the direction is fast and furious, and the visual effects, including costumes, settings, and stunning camera shots, all work to a powerful end. Would you even dream of skipping this film, serious film fans? I say, no way, Jose. Like the postal service, let no rain, snow, sleet, or dread of night keep you from buying a ticket.