Inception

In a world where technology exists to enter the human mind through dream invasion, a single idea within one's mind can be the most dangerous weapon or the most valuable asset. A highly skilled thief is given a final chance at redemption which involves executing his toughest job till date, Inception.

Leonardo DiCaprio (Titanic, Shutter Island) plays Cobb, the Extractor, a man who enters other people’s dreams to steal their secrets. Cobb is hired to steal the secrets of Saito, played by Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai, Letters From Iwo Jima) , a businessman that turns the tables on Cobb, and then hires him for never-done-before job of inception- the planting of an idea in a subject’s mind. Cobb accepts the job based on a promise from Saito, who tells him that he is able to make a murder charge against Cobb disappear so he can return to his family.

The film layers dreams on top of dreams to the point where a unique keepsake called a “totem” is required in order to inform a character as to whether or not he or she is still dreaming.

Then you have people in particular roles like “The Architect”, “The Forger”, and “The Chemist” in order to pull off the job. Furthermore, dreams have rules: dying in a dream forces the dreamer to wake up, delving too deeply into a mind can cause an eternal slumber called “Limbo”, using memories to construct dreams is dangerous because it can blur the line between dreams and reality. In addition, intruding in the dreams of another will cause the dreamer’s “projections” (human representations created by the dreamer) to attack the intruders like white blood cells going after an infection. And these explanations only represent a fraction of the terminology, rules, exceptions, or details that are necessary for creating the world of Inception.

 It’s not a confusing movie if you provide it with your full attention. There are a lot of movies that ask you turn off your brain and enjoy. Inception is not one of those movies. There’s a lot to take in, but the imaginative and thoughtful delivery of exposition keeps the viewer riveted despite the amount of information required in order to understand the premise, setting, and plot.

It tends to be the case that lots of rules create lots of loopholes. Filmmakers can use these to cheat and let audiences fill in the leaps of logic. But Inception always plays fair. It will twist your mind but it’s not a film built on twists. It’s a film built on possibilities and the boldness of pursuing those possibilities.

The film deserves, demands, and rewards repeat viewings, but from your first viewing you can grasp the events on screen and how they interact with each other as long as you force yourself to be an active viewer. But with set pieces so intricate, so jaw-dropping, and so breathtaking, you’ll find that there’s no exertion needed to stay focused. You’ll already be swept up in the whirlwind.