Review

Review Date: 18-July-10
Spoiler Rating: Medium
Juju Judgment: Juicy

Inception (2010)

The word that keeps coming to mind as I ponder Christopher Nolan's Inception is "level." It can mean many things, and as regards this unusually brainy thriller it suggests both ranking and complexity. For example, following my rather generous assessment of The Last Airbender and the limitations of a solitary filmmaker, Inception reminds me that one man can write, produce, and direct a film that is innovative, polished, and entertaining, i.e., that degrees of control are less important than degrees of talent. In another comparative sense, Inception shows Nolan taking his interest in architecture, so notable in The Dark Knight, to the next level — he actually depicts characters creating physical landscapes as expressions of their hearts and minds. This speaks to the strength of Inception: its fluidity of imagination. A fitting strength for a movie concerned with dreams.

Not just concerned with dreams, but consisting of dreams. The plot revolves around a group of specialized mercenaries, led by a man named Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), who are able to infiltrate and manipulate unconscious minds. This skill has proved valuable to corporate barons who want to steal their competitors' secrets. Yet now a Japanese executive (Ken Watanabe) commissions Cobb and his right-hand man (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) for a different kind of assignment. Rather than pilfer a trade secret, this client wants to implant the idea into a fledgling tycoon (Cillian Murphy) to break up the conglomerate he has inherited from his father. This is inception instead of extraction, and a much more delicate proposition. To attempt it, Cobb gathers the best and brightest, including a rookie architect to build dreamscapes (Ellen Page, successfully stretching her range) and an unflappable henchman to handle the more physical aspects of the mission (Tom Hardy). The bulk of the picture occurs inside one of these character's heads, or all of them really, since they crowd together in a fabricated Land of Nod.

Despite its cerebral location, Inception is essentially an action movie flavored with the imagery of the subconscious, such as chases, manifestations of safety, and ominous descents from one place (or level) to another. Surely mine will not be the only review to point out the inherent drawback in this, which is that nobody fully enjoys or comprehends other people's dreams. This speaks to the weakness of Inception: a fuzziness of purpose overlaid by the veneer of unreality. As the characters risk actual death in a tiered labyrinth of illusion, Cobb struggles towards his own catharsis relating to the loss of his wife (Marion Cotillard). The assignment is his last chance to come to grips with his past and attain a bearable future. Using layers of the dream world to heighten the suspense means putting layers of remoteness between the audience and Cobb's emotions, which do not resonate as much as they should. No fault falls on the actors; the adventure simply entails a psychological distance that muffles the effect of a personal story. In addition, the visual hocus-pocus does not obscure the shortcuts Nolan took in his ambitious script, like implying that the break-in Cobb and his crew are committing is benign to the victim and maybe the world, thus excusing them from censure. Yet certain flaws notwithstanding, Inception is an original work of escapism. It implants the urge in me to applaud a filmmaker who seeks to push the envelope and has the skill to do so.

Copyright © 2010 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.