Nolan's new work is well dreamy...

Rating: 9/10 (24 July 2010)

Firstly, let's get the bad stuff out of the way. Luckily it isn't a film related but more to do with the cinema. I saw this on a stupidly small screen that didn't justify a big film like this plus the cinema had terrible audio with the film's dialogue being at times barley audible, whilst much of the other sounds being crystal clear. This really hampered my enjoyment to some extent as I struggled to hear what was being said and it is a film that had a lot of explanation happening.
So the film, well it pretty amazing, it is a hyped up film that lives up to its hype. It looks incredible for a start, everything visually works, the settings, the styling and the special effects. The cast are all very good. Ellen Page is far the annoying Ellen Page we've seen before and Leonardo DiCaprio is really great in this, in fact I like him more and more as he gets older. The stand out performance for me is from Marion Cotillard who is not only stunning, she proves again that she is a fine actor. I'm yet to see her in anything that she hasn't been good. The films start is perhaps a little confusing-not helped by the lack of audio- but gradually it becomes more coherent. It is a truly original and exciting story, although similarity to other films can be made, this hold it's own absolutely.
The story is an exciting and gripping one and despite the long running time, it flows along brilliantly. The blending of reality and dreamworlds are executed perfectly and whilst the film relies on special effects, they are so dazzling that it barley registrars. There are some spectacular images, the streets of Paris folding over on itself is breathtaking and then there is the use of slow motion, when the street scape starts exploding in Paris or when the van falls towards the water and we see the sleeping occupants follow gravity. One of my favorite moments is during the later scenes where Arthur-played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt- in a seemingly weightless world runs around a rotating room and corridor and then ropes the bodies together placing them in a lift. I was so amazed by this, yet struggled with how it was done, it look like it was filmed in one of those planes that achieve weightlessness.
This is an all round impressive feature that shows that Christopher Nolan is a remarkable film maker. I think it's a film that deserves several viewings to fully appreciate and understand it, but one that is well worth it.
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