Movie Review - Inception

Cool. That was cool.

That's what I said as I left the theater after watching the movie, Inception. Cool.

Halfway through the movie, I started writing the review in my head and it was not good. I was frustrated - it felt like they were changing the "rules" in the middle of the game, I was losing track of what was going on and who was who. It was like watching a basketball game but all the players looked the same and wore the same uniforms. Who wants to watch a movie or a game when you can't tell the "good guys" from the "bad guys"? But eventually, all things were explained and cleared up and I ended up saying, WOW.

The main character is Cobb played by Leonardo DiCaprio. He "shares" dreams and invades peoples minds to steal their secrets. Corporations hire him to find out information they can't otherwise access. It's called, extraction. But now, Cob has been contacted by someone who wants him to try "inception", putting an idea INTO someone's mind, not take it out. And he dangles the thing Cobb wants most in the world - it's too irresistible and Cobb takes the bait.
Ellen Page also stars in this movie as one of the people Cobb chooses for his team. She is one of my favorites, I loved her performance in Whip It.

I liked this movie very much. Sometimes movies are good because of the story, sometimes because of the actors. The credit for this one, in my opinion, goes to the director, Christopher Nolan (Memento, The Dark Knight). The special effects, the way the movie is filmed, edited, and scored, all makes for a visual experience that is best in a theater. I think this will be in my top 5 for the year.
One caveat, if you are frustrated in movies when you don't know what exactly is going on, this is not the movie for you. My parents are like that - they like to hear every word and don't like uncertainty, flashbacks, dream vs reality, etc. I am not recommending this to them.

Two enthusiastic thumbs up!
Oh, one hint, there are items called "totems" in the movie, play close attention when they are described, it will help you distinguish between dreams and reality.

(Coming tomorrow, a review of Sorcerer's Apprentice. Preview, I liked that too. For kids? Definitely Sorcerer's Apprentice. For adults? Inception.)