INCEPTION (English/PG13)Genre: Action/Science Fiction/Thriller
Release Date: 15 July 2010
Distributor: Warner Bros.
Running Time: 148 minutes
Director: Christopher Nolan
Producers: Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas
Writer: Christopher Nolan
Casts: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Ken Watanabe, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Cilain Murphy, Dileep Rao, Tom Berenger, Michael Caine
Plot: Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a skilled thief: stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious during the dream state when the mind is at its most vulnerable. Cobb's rare ability has made him a coveted player in this treacherous new world of corporate espionage, but it has also made him an international fugitive and cost him everything he has ever loved. Now Cobb is being offered a chance at redemption. One last job could give him his life back but only if he can accomplish the impossible - inception. Instead of the perfect heist, Cobb and his team of specialists have to pull off the reverse; their task is not to steal an idea but to plant one. But no amount of careful planning or expertise can prepare the team for the dangerous enemy that seems to predict their every move.
THE VERDICT
What movie can give you more bombshells and constant fragments of idea throughout the 148 minutes journey? What differentiates one from the reality and dream after all? Is your subconscious ready to defend itself after all? Christopher Nolan is the man with revolution and visionary story teller that adapts difficult subjects while turning them into an grand movie. No doubt, Inception plays a very intriguing topic that no other Hollywood filmmakers are able to make at such pure genuinity and entertaining while for that Christopher Nolan has cemented himself as one of the greatest story teller ever.
Inception centers on Dom Cobb, an "extractor", who enters the dreams of others to obtain information that is otherwise inaccessible. Leonardo DiCaprio plays Cobb, a highly skillful heist-via-dream extracto who fails his only mission while trying to extract confidential documents from Saito (Ken Watanabe). Desperate to return home to meet his children, Cobb accepted a rare opportunity by agreeing on Saito's offer for redemption - that's planting an idea to his competitor Maurice Fischer (Cilian Murphy). Cobb now need to assemble a team with speciality to perform an inception, previously thought to be impossible to do.
Christopher Nolan's Inception should have got nominated for next year's Oscar and the reasons are pretty obvious. Inception is an unique sci-fi thriller with ambiguous explanation after you have watched it. No doubt, Inception is the most talked about movie of the year on the net and on this blog. The movie is simply awesome and mind-blowing, although it may not reach the masterpiece status on the grandest scale, let's say The Dark Knight or Memento. However, you alco cannot deny the fact that Inception reliefs the early promises for been one the most anticipated movie of the summer, and oh boy, it succeed.
Inception lays multiple structured stories perfectly and again making use of the intelligent play of intertwining several timelines into a compact movie. It turns out to be one of the most cerebral movie of our time. The first full hour serves as an exposition and you should absorb as much informations and ideas as possible before the movie turns into a full shift gear of visceral complexity of actions and sci-fi elements on it. Then, could this win the original screenplay? Yes, why not. The script is hefty, compact and precise - the ideas are thrown in slowly and it builds up perfectly as time goes on. While one may sees some parallelity with The Matrix, this is almost completely different. With a runtime of 148 minutes, every piece of details are kept innovative.
Unlike most of Nolan's movie that feels cold in emotion, the character Cobb provides a strong emotional touch throughout. He is a tortured man that has to live in the reality that he could not go back home to see his children while the guilt of causing the death of his wife lingers. DiCaprio has cemented himself as a solid actor with two best performance this year - in Inception and in Shutter Island. The ensemble casting is strong, chemically-bonded and aspiring; but it does not necessary translated into an Oscar winning. No doubt, one of those surprising factors is that how great Michael Caine in the limited two scenes, Tom Hardy, Cilian Murphy, Ellen Page and Joseph Gordon Lewitt are.
From technicality, Inception has a slight advantage of been epic not only due to its complex cerebral story line, but also due to the fact that Hans Zimmer crafted a wonderful mesmerizing musical score. The score is definitely matching the scenes well with a perfect balance of emotion, actions and intensity. The cinematography is excellent and creative while the visual effects are stunning.
IN SHORT
In a nutsell, is Inception been a perfect movie? No, but almost. Inception at the current point, deserves Oscar nominations, thanks to its creative and wonderful cinematic experience that does not get old. The complex story may allows you to sink yourself into multiple viewings and the constant evolving ideas pay off well. Inception never fails to relief its high standard of anticipation. It is easy to fall in love with Inception and there's no causative worriness that the film may dampen your spirit. Only words of advise - get yourself prepared, watch for every particular details inside the movie and get your brain fried in a good way. Enough said, Inception is a pure mind-blower entertainment.
THE RATING
Story - 4.5 stars
Casts - 5.0 stars
Cinematography - 5.0 stars
Effects - 5.0 stars
OVERALL - 5.0 stars
GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 19.2