Movie Review: Inception

I doubt there is a person alive who hasn't heard of Christopher Nolan's latest film, Inception. With all the hype surrounding the release, I have to admit I was just a little skeptical. Not that I doubt Mr. Nolan's ability to tell and present his audience with an incredible story, but I have fallen prey to the thought that watching a movie could be a life altering experience. After watching the movie today, I have to say that I'm glad I was proven wrong.

Inception is a film about dream hijackers who get into their subjects' subconsciousness to extract information. Sounds cool, right? Well, it is. To see the textures of a dream brought to crisp, crystal high definition was nothing short of visually stunning. I particularly enjoyed the use of natural environments to set the mood and tone. Nolan is a master at creating an experience for the audience, and he certainly did that in this film. My husband and I saw this in XD, and it was incredible. What was also pretty cool was that Nolan resisted the trend of making a 3D version of this film. I have the feeling it was because he knew he didn't need a gimmick to get people in the seats.

Back in the day, before YouTube, Hulu and the general playground that is the internet were easily available to me, I had a membership at Blockbuster that I used on an almost daily basis. I would rent four movies at a time, and since I didn't have cable, I usually watched two or three of them a night. It was during this period when I found Memento and then Following, then a few years after that, I saw Insomnia in the theater. Nolan's skills as a writer and director really gripped me, and his unique point of view left me hungry for more. What I loved the most were his characters.

Dark, brooding, complex and unaware what is happening to them, Nolan's characters are always the focus. While the stories in each of the films are excellent, the characters are the gems. Cobb, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, is our hero, the man who leads the rest of the dream squad because of his knowledge and expertise. As the story unfolds, we find that he's deeply disturbed and haunted by his past. Ellen Page plays Ariadne, a young college student who has the brains and ability to be one of the best. Her heart is what sets her apart from the rest of the crew, and she is also strong and complicated.

The cast turns in believable performances, and each of them holds their own. I was slightly surprised by Joseph Gordon-Levitt's performance, as I didn't expect that Tommy Solomon could have any kind of presence on screen next to Leo. He did an excellent job playing the loyal sidekick, and his past role as a funny kid definitely came into play during the film. Marion Cotillard also turned in a moving performance as Cobb's wife.

It's hard for me to review this film without giving too much away, so let me just say this: make the time to see this film in the theater. With the stunning visuals, great story telling, complicated characters, intense action scenes and a pay off that you wait for the entire film, this movie must be seen. At times, the suspense was so palpable that I caught myself holding my breath. While this movie is by no means perfect, it will certainly have you on the edge of your seat, rooting for the dream thieves to complete their mission before they wake up.