Inception, just saw it

[MrMarch]

Had a great time at the movies tonight and feeling a very strong need to post about "Inception", the new film from Christopher Nolan. It's that rare kind of film in which posting hyperbole-stuffed enthusiastic praise carries with it no guilt. Single-handedly saved summer movies...the one film that doesn't need 3D to sell the audience a heightened experience...a master filmmaker at the top of his game...a triumph that transcends the cliche of that label. I'd call "Inception" a religious experience if it weren't so damned good

"Inception" has a compelling story that demands your attention. A powerful cast so well utilized that not a single actor or line is wasted. An amazing score that one will not soon forget. Sublime camera work that never calls attention to itself and only draws you further in. Fantastic special effects that mesh with the film rather noticing where the money was spent. Masterful use of unique set design/locations to visually guide a complex narrative. Action packed, funny, dramatic and totally fulfilling. This is the first post-Matrix film to finally realize the FULL visual potential of that promise.

I wanted to watch "Inception" a second time before it was over. Even if you don't like the film, "Inception" is the best of the money you'll spend poorly 5 out of 5.

[DougCos]

I have to agree wholly. I saw it last night and it was amazing. The movie felt very original, which was a plus after a deluge of remakes and sequels. The thing that got me the most was the use of time. The staggered settings and the flow of events through them were amazing. And the ending:

Spoiler

My personal take is that he is still in a dream. The children dont appear to have aged at all and the top spins longer than we ever saw it spin before. Maybe he is still in limbo, but nolonger aware of the dream. Either way, great ending

I definatly recomend seeing the movie to everyone else. It easily is the best movie of the summer. (Or if it ends up not being - the movie that is will have to be one of the best movies ever)

[SonicSP]

Just watched it a few hours ago, and I have to agree with both posters that it was a great great watch. I dont watch all the movies that come out so I am so glad my friend invited me for this one. The acting was pretty good as well as so was the establishment of the mental connection network thing. They did not emphasize much on the actual science technology that makes the connection possible, but its worth it so they can focus on establishing the mental rules of the movie when it comes to entering the dream networks, which is very complex at its own.

The last section of the movie felt just a bit draggier than the pace of the previous sections (which was superbly paced), but other than that the movie was perfect. Fits with my tastes, going to watch it again definitely.

[Oruma]

thirded. I watched it friday night with a couple of friends.
love the part in the hotel where Arthur fought and went about in Zero-G.

my friend and I both agreed that, while we wanted a "good end" for Cobb, plus the slight wobbling of the spinning top, the ending was most likely still a dream state for him. Again, like the poster above I felt the ages of the children was the clue.
My friend's already saying he wants the blue-ray of this movie
Definitely one of the best movies I've seen thus far this year, just next to Toy Story 3

[Soma Taozi]

Loved Inception, it is my favorite summer movie so far. Toy Story 3 was amazing, but I enjoy movies that mess with my head more so. Honestly, this movie was like The Dark Knight mixed with The Matrix, mixed with the Prestege... which really...how could you go wrong with that? It is impossible.

I thought the ending was perfect and fitting because you have to draw your own way of how it ended. There is no "right" answer and I feel that trying to justify the movie with an ending defeats the purpose of having such a mind blasting final.

...to quote another movie of this summer, Get Him to the Greek (it was alright...not amazingly funny...but ok), and I will try to make this as clean as possible. This movie was a "mind f*** and I hope it was.....because I have a dirty mind"

I would have written the whole joke, but honestly, I am not sure how far I can go on this forum. But, if you saw Get Him to the Greek, you will understand this.

[Oruma]

For those who've seen both Toy Story 3 and Inception.
Enjoy.

[Red Comet90]

Funny vid.

I just saw the movie this past weekend and I have to say...it was amazing. This is the movie of the summer that delivers both in plot and action. The story was just great and the music, the acting, and just the directing. It was fantastic. The score sounded like what the Dark Knight should have been. It was just so much better than that score and I love that one.

Those last 40 or so minutes of the movie were just pure awesome....the movie holds its suspense for so long and it doesn't let you go so long as you have kept up with it. Watching the bus fall was great and it was just amazing to see it all unfold. I definitely want to see this again.

[SonicSP]

Watched this movie three times already, and I cant remember the last time I did that for a movie while its running. Its just so............awesome.

[Dark Duel]

I know...and the ending is just icing on the cake. Nolan is a genius director. Easily the best movie of the summer IMHO.

Honestly, this movie was like The Dark Knight mixed with The Matrix, mixed with the Prestege

There's a good reason for its similarity to at least two of those titles: both Dark Knight and Prestige were directed by Christopher Nolan, who also directed Inception.
Which reminds me: One of the promotional posters for Inception shows DiCaprio's character, standing facing forward(we see him from behind) in a cltyscape, the background being primarily in shades of blue - this is extremely similar to a promotional image for Dark Knight, which had Heath Ledger's character standing in a nearly identical pose, against a similarly-colored background.

[SonicSP]

Wow, just watched this for the fourth time in the cinema today........I don't think I've ever done that before for another movie, I rarely go for 2nd watches as it is.

Do not know why I'm loving Inception so much. Its like my soul has been waiting for a movie like this to come out............

I know pretty much all the features of the movie are great and all, but I think I'm especially loving the music for some reason. It just sticks in your head all the time even when the movie is not playing. I guess I sort of agree with the topic creator's post almost spot on.

Kudos to Christopher Nolan for writing, directing and producing such an awesome movie. Your experience/training with Batman Begins and Dark Knight did not go wasted.

Maybe someone incepted the love of this movie in my mind........>__>

[SNT1]

I freakin lurved this movie. They're dead-on when it comes to describing dreams.

When I finished it I can hear murmurs of some people saying "I got lose in the part where--"

...

Not so! Incredibly easy to follow, really, even with it's plot and setting.

As for the ending,

Spoiler

The top, while spinning fast, was surely slowing down in the end before they cut it off, prompting an audience making a collective groan in the movie theater

Some theories/claims I've heard in addition to those above"

Spoiler

-Some claim that you can hear the top stop right after they cut the video in the end
-Cobb is indeed still in a dream. His wife commited suicide in that dream, but she's the one really awake in the real world.

Hmmmm>

[SonicSP]

Some theories/claims I've heard in addition to those above"

Spoiler

-Cobb is indeed still in a dream. His wife commited suicide in that dream, but she's the one really awake in the real world.

Hmmmm>

Spoiler

I disagree, regardless of whether Cobb was in a dream or not in the final scene. He was in a real world at some point, because the top fell in some scenes. Otherwise, the totem as an indicator of anything (including the final scene, and the totem was the main indicator everyone is using to question the scene before it was blackened out) is just plain unreliable then, which would then moot any need of argument of whether the final scene was a dream or not.

Another interesting point is that Arthur said that the totem is used to tell whether you are in someone elses dream or not, he said specifically. So it may mean that your totem may drop in one of your own dreams because mind knows the totem very well but not necessarily someone elses's. I still have not being able to grasp the consequences of Arthur's words though at this moment. I just consider it simply as drop= reality and spin= dream. But maybe one day I'll try when I have the brainpower.

Although Cobb just says that "in a dream it will never fall, just continue spinning and spinning", without any specification. Not necessarily a contradiction, but should be take into account as well.

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My personal theory

Spoiler

My personal theory is that Cobb is in a dream, more precisely I think his still in limbo but he just changed the setting. He avoided looking at his children's face in any of the dreams because he knows their all projection and he wants to see the real ones (looking at the faces may make him lose sight of his reality, he can barely tell whether Mal was real or not at times; like the sniper rifle scene, despite being aware of the fact that she wasnt). My guess is that after Cobb saw the faces of his children in the final scene, he will eventually forget about the totem and that will be his "reality", just like it happened to Mal.

We never saw Cobb get out of limbo either, which needs to be exited by killing yourself while being aware that your dreaming. We assume that the Saito used the gun to shoot them both, which then leads to the aeroplane scene but Cobb may have just strangely changed "scenes" in the limbo words perhaps.

Nolan was wise to omit the shooting to further cloud the truth, because I did not realize it either until I'm writing this. Not showing the shooting is not evidence of its a dream because the presumption of the audience is that Saito would shoot him and that may have happened, but it does leave things open abit once you consider other factors like the how the children's clothes are the same. But there's arguments on the other side as well I'm sure, thats the genius of Nolan's ending really.

I think Cobb is in the coma state in the real world on that plane. He would have to be disconnected from the machine eventually, but I wonder if he'll just stay in a coma state then if that happens? Would it also be too late?

I've watched it for the 5th time the other day. I feel like going for a 6th, but I'm not sure whether I can go through with it because I've watched it with pretty much all of my friends/family that would be willing to go to a movie with me.

---------

Spoiler

I liked this movie, despite all the "out there" settings of this movie, there's so many elements that are easy to relate with. Family, regret, forgiveness, love. Stuff that I think most people could relate with. Just a guy haunted by the death of his wife and wants to get back to his children no matter what. Fisher's scene with his dad was touching as well, even if it was "forged". Even if it was not real and that his father truly did not love him, it will be real in Fisher's heart and mind.

But I would like to say again, brilliant Christopher Nolan. Just amazingly brilliant. Kudos to Leonardo de Caprio as well. So many times there are movie with very good concepts but rarely does the execution is well done where most of it is just simply near perfection, Inception would be one of those. Nolan had an idea regarding dreams, and he turned it into reality, highly contagious like a parasite indeed.

[Antares]

With all the hype, I had to go see it too. Since I am an overtly critical old man, I am simply ranking Inception "Good", but not the full five stars. The movie didn't have many problems to speak off, and was carried off very well by the plot and the cast. The visuals were great, but at this point in movies I find it hard to be impressed by that alone. The best thing the movie had going for was the suspense, which was very well created and maintained with the help of the score, which I do give the movie full credit for.

The ending also, after consideration, was good. The spin-wheel wobbling kind of left it open rather than stating outright he was in the dream. A real surprise would've been to see the spin wheel fall over, because even then you'd have doubts. I also credit Nolan for not trying to pull of "oh-what-a-twist" in the end in general, because movies on reality-bending or dreams are rife with that.

Sure, it had more depth than most summer movies, but to call it too hard to follow is a failing on the part of the viewer. Most of the pseudo-philosophical musings on reality and the nature of dreams was done to fit into the movie; I had the distinct feeling that from the narration's point of view further elaboration wasn't needed. By not going in too deep Nolan opted for a rushed explanation which the audience didn't have time (or from the point of view of the narration, didn't need) to digest. Of course, being the nitpicker I am, I would've liked to get a little deeper still, and maybe hear a little on how the dream-raiding process actually came about. But maybe in a movie this long it would've created unnecessary drag when a good half of the movie was a race against time.

[Soma Taozi]

I was tempted to watch Inception again because I loved it so much....but then I realized that I could just watch the Matrix backwards while doing origami and have the same experience. Oh am maybe mix in some Hans Zimmer music....