Nolan pulls it off, but almost too mindbending for its own good!

Rating: 8/10 (18 July 2010)

There is a scene in Inception, when Leonardo DiCaprio's character, Cobb, introduces Ellen Page's character, Ariadne, to the possibilities of dreams and the ability to change the architecture within that said dream. Ariadne literally bends the streets of Paris upside down, walking up walls, changing streets, and raising bridges. That scene is a marvelous introduction, and was so imaginative, feeling as if it laid seeds for the possibilities of the rest of the movie. I was just imaging the possibilities of dream creation and manipulation within action sequences, but this was a concept never explored beyond this one scene, and this sort of became a trend for the rest of the movie. Lots of promise and potential, but the elevator never quite reached the tenth and final floor.
Like a labyrinth of the mind, Inception, manages to befuddle and clutter your brain to the point of confusion at times, as if you're getting lost in an insane maze, but thankfully no Minotaurs.
Writer/Director Christopher Nolan's latest weaves a heist film about a team of subconscious extractors who venture into the dream states of their subjects, mostly corporate CEOs, to steal the secrets of their multi-billion dollar corporations. But the movie puts this concept on its head as the team of extracting characters try to attempt the opposite, called inception, or planting a thought into the heir to a large energy conglomerate, Charles Fischer's mind. They must venture deep into the human subconscious to do so, dodging the subject's attempts at booting out the foreign visitors, not to mention, the constant terror of being found by the ghost of Cobb's ex-wife who wants to sabotage the mission.
Inception is a tough nut to crack. It is very easy to get lost within its labyrinth of complex twists-and-turns, and in many ways I felt as if the movie was a touch too convoluted, and that it nearly got lost in the architectural maze of its own creation. While Nolan manages to hold everything together with no gaping plot holes to mention, the movie still flies at a breakneck pace that does not allow the viewer to really drink in the environments or the wondrous cinematography, because it is such a dense story. The editing cuts before you can really get a look at a shot, and this makes the fantastical action sequences often not as amazing as they are. It's less grandeur and sort of claustrophobic in feel.
While there are some quips with Inception, it is still a good movie. The action sequences are solid, while the only tour de force is the sequence with Joseph Gordon-Levitt fighting off baddies in a revolving hallway, this action bit alone is stellar enough to warrant the price of admission. Plus, Levitt did his own stunts! As well, the acting is very even, Ellen Page and Cillian Murphy being the true standouts. Their two characters, Ariadne (Leo's apprentice of sorts) and Fischer (the guy they're trying to implant the idea in), having the most complete arcs of the entire story. Filling it out, Leonardo DiCaprio manages to turn in a solid performance that by no means will advance his career any further, but does nothing to hurt it, and Marion Cottilard is extremely creepy as the ghost of Cobb's wife.
As you can gather, Inception is jam-packed, a movie that I guess only the most complex minds can master, and I guess I'm not complex enough to love it, but I do like it a great deal. This is an original movie, and that gets this one a lot of points in my book, there not being many of those these days. Plus, the ambition is impeccable, I could never have dreamed up a ride such as this. While I feel more could have been done with it in letting us see more grandeur and overall imagination in the dream world sequences, it is an enjoyable ride, and I think this one's for Nolan, now time for the guy to give us some more of the Caped Crusader.
I give Inception an 8 out of 10!