A film that is, in and of itself, a puzzle

Rating: 9/10 (16 July 2010)

From Memento, to The Prestige, to The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan is quickly becoming one of the premiere directors of intellectual, yet crowd-pleasing entertainment. Now, just to jump right in, Inception continues this trend, while demonstrating more creativity than perhaps any of his other films.
If there's one complaint that I can imagine people having over this film, it's that the plot can be particularly difficult to follow. And while I feel that this is true to some extent, that's because Inception is, in and of itself, a puzzle. All of the pieces are presented to you, and solving it depends not so much on intelligence, but on whether or not you find that sort of element appealing in a movie. It's a film in which much of the dialogue is spent simply explaining the rules of this complex dream world, and therefore demands that you be wide awake.
Even so, there had still better be an endearing cast of characters to follow, especially with this being a two-and-a-half hour experience, and thankfully, Inception delivers. While none of them, outside of DiCaprio's character, have much back story to speak of, they all feature exceptionally likable personalities, so by the time that the stirring climax hit, I was concerned about the fate of each and every one of them. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's performance as DiCaprio's right-hand man, Arthur, blew me away in particular. The guy doesn't have a ton of screen time, but damn, does he leave an impression!
Ultimately, however, Inception is the story of DiCaprio's character, Cobb. Now, I won't say much, as giving any plot details outside of the synopsis would be a crime, but suffice it to say, it's some pretty engrossing stuff, and DiCaprio definitely brings his A-game here.
Also, as expected, Hans Zimmer proves once again that he is the boss when it comes to musical scores, as each scene is enhanced tremendously by his material. He's the sort of musician who can make even the simplest of actions seem more important than anything else that's happened in human history. If only you, sir, could score my life.
With its challenging narrative structure, likable characters (if somewhat lacking in depth), and sheer visual splendor, Inception is easily among my favorite movies of the year, second only to Pixar's latest classic. It's been a rough summer movie season, and while we've still got quite a few weeks left before it's officially over, Inception succeeded in reminding me why I dig this medium so much.