This is how the pitch for Inception went (and this is fact, by the way). Christopher Nolan walked in to WB's office, dragging sackfulls of money, awards and reviews behind him. He sat down and began:
NOLAN: I think super slow-motion and zero-gravity will look really cool on the big screen.
STUDIO: Yeah, that’d be good, though what's the story?
NOLAN: Not a clue, but I'll think of one.
And so the rules of the Inception dream world took shape:
How can I use super slow-motion? Inexplicably have time go slower in each progressive level.
How can I carry on using a main character that's dying? Inexplicably have him healthier in each progressive level.
How can I get floating people in it? Make it so the kick is when the van crashes into the water after falling off a bridge, that’ll give you freefall, that’ll give you zero gravity.
That all sounds a bit cynical and makes me sound like I'm not a fan. I am - I think it is a brilliantly constructed chunk of cinema where pretty much everything works. The balance is perfect between action (for those Saturday nighters who don't want to think) and intelligence (for those who want to work out the meaning behind every single frame of the film). I have heard people say the action dumbs-down the intellect of the film, I’d say it's the other way round: Inception is clevering-up the summer blockbuster. Next year's summer biggie, Transformers 3, will be even more complex than Inception, you wait and see.
The following content is in a question and answer format. It’s easier that way.
IS IT ALL A DREAM?
No. There's one ambiguous scene that can make you wonder if it's all a dream. Where Cobb is washing his face after being spooked while being under, he tries to use his totem but is disturbed and drops it. We never get to see how it spun... and neither does Cobb. The real proof that it’s not a dream is in the final shot: the totem would spin perfectly in a dream, here it does not.
No. There's one ambiguous scene that can make you wonder if it's all a dream. Where Cobb is washing his face after being spooked while being under, he tries to use his totem but is disturbed and drops it. We never get to see how it spun... and neither does Cobb. The real proof that it’s not a dream is in the final shot: the totem would spin perfectly in a dream, here it does not.
WHY IS MAL IN ANOTHER WINDOW?
She needed to give Cobb a (last) chance to go with her, she needed to plead with him, face to face. If she'd been in the same room, it wouldn't have worked (he'd also be able to save her cuz he's, like, a super spy fighter guy). Why the odd layout of the two opposite windows, then? Maybe she simply checked into the room opposite.
She needed to give Cobb a (last) chance to go with her, she needed to plead with him, face to face. If she'd been in the same room, it wouldn't have worked (he'd also be able to save her cuz he's, like, a super spy fighter guy). Why the odd layout of the two opposite windows, then? Maybe she simply checked into the room opposite.
WHY DID MAL NEVER SNAP OUT OF IT?
Because she constructed scenes from her real life and, as we were told, that's where confusion begins.
Because she constructed scenes from her real life and, as we were told, that's where confusion begins.
DO YOU NEED TO SEE IT TWICE?
Absolutely. It is a film that demands more than one viewing, if only to listen to Ariadne's first two sentences... Notice how the last word in both raises by about an octave.
Absolutely. It is a film that demands more than one viewing, if only to listen to Ariadne's first two sentences... Notice how the last word in both raises by about an octave.
IS CHRISTOPHER NOLAN CONSTRUCTED OF STANLEY KUBRICK'S DNA?
No. Nolan insists on explaining the structure of his films. Usually with a neat diagram.
No. Nolan insists on explaining the structure of his films. Usually with a neat diagram.
ANYTHING ELSE?
This soundtrack secret is a slice of fried gold:
This soundtrack secret is a slice of fried gold:
All of this is fact. Apart from the bit about Transformers 3.
