A Matrix of dreams

Rating: 9/10 (7 November 2010)

After the first Matrix movie was released, there was this consistent rumour that predicted the Matrix itself was a simulation in a deeper Matrix still. Inception is like that rumour was translated into a movie, only without Agent Smith. What can I say... there are turtles all the way down. The casting of Leo de Caprio is funny to me. Just after a movie where we've explored his subconscious, we go deeper. The movie starts with him on a beach, too.
But let me tell you about the movie. It is very well done, the tension is palpable and the effort that went into creating the dream worlds is top notch. I am not talking about computer effects only, but also about entire action scenes that reminded of Matrix just a little bit too much. While the idea (ahem) of the film is simple enough, its implementation navigates in a labyrinth of subconscious worlds, several levels deep. I only wish the first half would have been clearer, without so much chasing and shooting. The action scenes were good, but almost irrelevant to the plot.
Bottom line: expect something a bit vague, that you must not strive to understand right away or, indeed, make total sense. It is a good idea which was put well in a movie. Oh, and Ellen Page is not completely annoying in the movie either. A cast that was too good for the roles many of them got, with episodic appearances by legends such as Michael Caine, Pete Postlethwaite or even Tom Berenger. This quickly washed away my disappointment of Lukas Haas' short role. The movie was good, but a religion? Not a chance. Stick to simpler psychological archetypes like a Messiah fighting a supercomputer to push that one.