Critic: Box Office Hit Inception a "Vivid, Memorable Ride"
Credit: Melissa Moseley SMPSP
Opens: Friday 7/16
Us Rating: ***1/2
In this dazzling sci-fi puzzle box, Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a dream thief -- stealing business secrets by entering into the subconscious of unsuspecting execs. The stakes rise when Cobb attempts an even riskier stunt called "inception": He plants a destructive idea into the mind of a wealthy corporate heir (Cillian Murphy), so that he will dismantle his late father's thriving company.
The trouble is, while Cobb meddles in strangers' fantasies as they sleep, his own mind begins to sabotage him -- and recurring images of his late wife (Marion Cotillard) throw him off his game. While this dream-within-adream structure can sometimes be confusing, the movie (costarring Juno's Ellen Page as DiCaprio's inventive colleague) is as startlingly original as The Matrix -- and just as visually astonishing. Its shape-shifting images make for vibrant eye candy: A Paris street scene folds in on itself so that asphalt replaces the sky; a rickety elevator opens into a sandy beach paradise. Once again, the self-assured DiCaprio nails a challenging flawed hero role (one that's not far from his brilliant turn in Shutter Island earlier this year). And director Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight, Memento) stylishly transports the audience to another world that, like many dreams, begins with the familiar and then takes a radical, imaginative leap. It all makes for a vivid and memorable ride.
--THELMA ADAMS
Tell Us What You Think
8@Dana I pitty your poor intelligence&understanding, and the same goes with your friends.------No wonder they say like attracts like
It was without a doubt the BEST movie ever!! It challenges your mind every minute. No time for restroom or you will loose the threads! The movie theater was full, nobody walked out, and everyone were in 'awe' after it was over. Loved it! Will go back to see it again and still try to put some pieces together. Worth every dollar spent. If you like to 'entertain' your brain, to challenge interpretations of ending...then go for it.
@svet I totally agree with you. Some idiots hated this movie because they don't understand it at the first place. Haha, I wonder if they got nosebleeds after watching.
To the intellect who claimed that Inception was gratuitously complex, let me get this straight? You are asserting that a movie ranking amongst the most popular opening day films as well as opening weekend theatrical events ever and therefore establishing it as being entertaining and understandable by a enormous percentage of those moviegoers was - to you - hated and according to your explanation - hated because it was too difficult for you to understand somehow establishes you as of an intellectual capacity that is relative to the average filmgoer? Uhmmmmm..... I would take a few days ... or maybe in your case ... let's make that a week ... to consider what in fact you have actually proven regarding how you compare relative to all these people that had no difficulty understanding the film and were in high praise of it? You might want to think very hard about where you have just proven you rank in terms of your intelligence with everyone else, Einstein.
this is movie was reallly goood! no one walked out of the threater i was in and everyone was glued to the screen. there are three layers of the dream because you have to dig deeep into the persons sub concious to plant an idea. you have to trick the brain. and people who dont get that and just say that it sucks, wow you obviously do not have a brain or no imagination. I LOVED IT! deff going to buy the dvd!
One of the best movies I've seen in a long time. Imagination at its best. Of course, if you're tired, don't see it. Also, if you're too dumb to follow a complex plot, don't see it. Otherwise, don't miss it!
I walked out of the movie. What a mess!
Most people will see this movie the first weekend because they trust Leornardo will make a good film.The second weekend will be a different story. This is one of the worst movies I have seen and I do not take that declaration lightly. Three of us went together (20 yr old and two 40ish adults) and we all hated it. Several people walked out after 30 mins. Sure, the acting and effects are decent (not great) but the plot is what ruins this movie. It is so convoluted, and gratuitously complex with so many layers that it makes every scene too much mental work to even care about. It makes you wonder how an actor could read that script and decide to sign on!The final scene when a van is slowly (inch by inch) falling into the river was seriously the longest 20 mins of my life. I was actually laughing to myself at the ridiculousness at some points. The basic plot, delving into the dreams and subconscious of the characters would have been interesting enough, but to decide they needed to have a dream inside a dream inside yet another dream, made this movie an unintelligent joke masquerading as a highly researched science experiment. We have all been so BAFFLED by the positivie reviews-I have not yet spoken to one person that has liked this movie. Leonardo was good though :)