review - Inception

Science fiction films in the 21st century fall into two distinct camps, with the "popcorn movie" up front and center. Chock full of CGI car chases, explosions and a narrative always set in the "near future". This is done in part to conveniently product place, market new gadgets and a hip-hopish soundtrack for an audience of people under 30. Pulling up the rear are high-minded SF films where no one in the audience is under 30, hopefully a significant amount of narrative exposition and no one eats popcorn. Its an "LSD movie" like "2001" where little is said, right?

Well "Inception" falls into the latter category and consumption of psychedelics will only spoil the fun. And people do talk. Written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight and the excellent Memento). The story centers on Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a thief who enters the dreams of others to obtain information that is otherwise inaccessible. Cobb's abilities have cost him his family and nationality, but a chance at redemption as well as regaining his old life is promised when Cobb and his team of specialists are hired to plant an idea in a target's subconscious. "Inception" refers to the task of planting an idea rather than stealing one, a concept that Cobb is less acquainted with.

It was nice for a change to see a genre film wear brains on its sleeve. The film's multi-level dream-state approach may be a bit confounding if you aren't paying attention....something a steady diet of poor SF/action/horror films (and popcorn) we can lay partial blame on.

Christopher Nolan has put together a very good film. Sure there are holes if you look for them, but when you can marry state-of-the-art visuals, an intriguing story and a some character pathos into something that happens to make money, you have a winner.