OT: Inception

[awaz]

that good eh?.. i really enjoyed the prestige and i too like movies that make you think.. maybe i'll check it out, definitely on the download list whenever it hits DVD's.. i've seen like 3 movies in theaters in the past 4 years

 

[Comeds]

I'll see the movie eventually, but, as usual, will wait until the crowds die down.

As for Leo, he's a decent actor. Nothing great. Not nearly the worst, though, either. I just think it's kind of funny that most of the "leading men" in our era who sometimes take on tough guy roles are like 5'10 and 170 pounds. Would any hockey player actually be scared of Leo? Or Brad Pitt? Or Johnny Depp? They might have had second thoughts seeing John Wayne or Marlon Brando or Clint Eastwood in their primes.

Let the record show that todays leading men are not manly enough for Dups liking.

 

[Dupster]

Hell, I'm out of shape and approaching 40, and I'm not afraid to throw down with Leo or Brad or Johnny.
Just another example of how things get completely wussified over the years, like the NHL. Chicks now dig guys...who look like chicks. Go figure.

 

[pixburgher66]

dup, as a chick, i agree with that statement full-heartedly. i want a MAN not freaking feminine Johnny Depp...so many girls go crazy for tight jeans and quaffed hair. i find the lumberjack/bearded look much more attractive...i want my man to wear flannel and jeans, not popped collars, tilted hats, gelled hair, and skinny jeans.

 

[Dupster]

Victoria/Vancouver/Seattle should be your travel destination of choice.

 

[pixburgher66]

hahahaha, i do want to make the pilgrimage to the great north...

 

[dare2be]

"My name is Diane and I only get turned on by Jewish cowboys..."

"Hello, Diane, I'm Bucky Goldstein"

 

[Comeds]

I don't think Depp, Brad, or Leo are really viewed as tough guy actors. When they have played tougher roles in movies its often been because they are not huge muscled men, therefore not looking invincible and making it more interesting.

I wouldn't mess with Wayne in his prime (awful actor IMO) or Eastwood (good but one dimensional actor IMO - grouchy) but I'd wouldn't be afraid of Brando. He wasn't a very big guy, I don't find him any scarier than Depp, Leo, or Brad. Fantastic actor though.

 

[Dupster]

Brando may not be large by today's standards, but he was pretty big for any guy in 1951. And was easily more intimidating than either Depp, Leo, or Brad. Brad Pitt acting tough in "fight club" gave the movie some unintentional comedy.

 

[Darkstone42]

I don't think Depp, Brad, or Leo are really viewed as tough guy actors. When they have played tougher roles in movies its often been because they are not huge muscled men, therefore not looking invincible and making it more interesting.

I wouldn't mess with Wayne in his prime (awful actor IMO) or Eastwood (good but one dimensional actor IMO - grouchy) but I'd wouldn't be afraid of Brando. He wasn't a very big guy, I don't find him any scarier than Depp, Leo, or Brad. Fantastic actor though.

I looked at Depp in Pirates of the Carribean more as a crafty protagonist than a tough guy. He would rather cheat than fight any time. And I think that's what made him compelling. Just an example, I think, of how heroes are used differently now.

Same with Leo in Inception. He didn't kick much butt, he just knew how to navigate the planes of the dreams. Arthur and Eames handle most of the butt-kicking.

 

[gtown27]

Hospital and snow fortress are the same level.

Let's start under the assumption that level 4 is limbo. How do you get out? Well I'm assuming a kick isn't enough, because otherwise they wouldn't really be worried about Saito. So I guess we can assume a kick isn't enough to get you out of limbo. The only way out of limbo is death, which would explain why Ariadne and Fisher need to go off the balcony.

But isn't Cobb killed by Mal? I thought she stabbed him. In which case why didn't he move up a level as well? And if the only way out of limbo was death, what was the point of the explosions in level 3? They seem to serve no purpose.

On the other hand, assume that level 4 isn't limbo, but just a deeper level of dreaming. Now the explosions in level 3 make sense. It also explains why Cobb let's Mal kill him; because he needs to go to limbo to find Saito. This returns us to the question; why does Ariadne jump? If she dies, she'll end up in limbo too, which she doesn't want. Does she just know that the explosion in level 3 will occur before she hits the ground?

Lots of questions. I'm sure Nolan will release some explanations with the dvd...

Couple big questions I have...I think...

Right now, I'm stuck on the fact that the whole movie was a dream. The whole thing. From beginning to end.

The movie begins with a scene at the end.... Saito spins Cobb's dradle does he not (leaving the whole totem explanation in question? They never showed Saito shoot Cobb or himself...the plot doens't make sense and never ends up making sense... the kid's at the end are in the same clothes AND position they are in throughout the movie...while the dradle at the end looks as if it may stop, the movie never shows it...Cobb spins the dradle at the end to make sure he's still not dreaming, but never cares to check if it stopped...

 

[devs30rko]

The big thing is the "kicks", and the multiple kicks they needed to get out of the various dream levels. The way I understood it, based on the opening scene and the training montages, was that a kick in reality would bring you out of a dream, and a kick in a dream would bring you out of a dream, etc...

So now let's go to the big multi-level dream of the climax. Let's label the levels.

Level 0 (reality): on the plane.
Level 1: The van driven by Yusuf.
Level 2: The hotel.
Level 3: The snow fortress.
Level 4: Cobb's subconcious. (Assume for now it's NOT limbo.)

So to bring Fisher, Juno and Cobb out of Level 4, Eames has to blow up the fortress in level 3. To bring everyone out of level 3, Arthur has to do his simulated kick using the elevator in level 2. To bring everyone out of level 2, the van driven by Yusuf has to hit the water. To bring everyone out of level 1 and back to reality, it's never shown but I assume the sedative wears off and the attendant wakes them up.

In this case, I have two questions:

1) They refer to two kicks in level 1: once when the van goes off the bridge, and once when it hits the water. Most of the characters missed the first kick because they were in level 3, a level too far. But Arthur was in level 2, he should have been woken up by that kick. Is it possible to ignore a kick?

2) Why does Juno throw Fisher off the balcony in level 4, and then jump herself? Wouldn't the kick from level 3 (blowing up the fortress) have been enough to pull her up a level?

If you believe level 4 is limbo, and not just another deeper dream state, then it gives you a possible answer to number 2 but brings up new questions.

Anyway, a great movie. For the record, Leo is great in pretty much all of his non-romantic roles.

remember, they were sedated and they talked about it where yusuf was able to alter the sedations so a normal kick wouldn't wake them up, only the sensation you get from when you land from a fall. so the van hitting the baracade doesn't provide that, where as a fan hitting the water in freefall does

then remember, because of the sedation if they we killed in levels 1, 2, or 3, it forces them into limbo, which is subconcious (remember limbo is pure subconcious, but there may be something there if someone you're sharing the dream with has been there before, in this case cobb had)

but it is also explained through the story of his wife that the only way out of limbo is to die, which basically means you have to kill yourself, to force you back up into level 3. thats why ariatne and fischer through themselves of the balcony to kill themselves, to put them back in to level 3, then notice, for all of them, the van falling hitting the water, the elevator sliding hard after the explosion, and the complex they were in in level 3 being blown up from the bottom up all provides ....... the feeling of falling.

thats how they got their kicks and why arthur was able to ignore the kick where the van hit the baricade.

and while they don't show it, for the sake of the movie assuming there won't be a 2nd (please don't ruin it) you also assume dom and sito kill themselves while in subconcious (limbo) to ride the kicks back up as well. remember you have far more time each level you go down, but there is nothing below limbo.

 

[GagneFire12]

If you see the movie again, watch his wedding ring.

 

[gtown27]

I think you guys are thinking way too in to the movie...which was the WHOLE POINT lol. It's a movie that doesn't have any concrete answers..

My theory: the whole movie is a dream.

 

[pixburgher66]

that's the cool thing about it, you get to assume what you want to. my thing was that the end, when he DIDNT check the top was because he had accepted this dream, this 'world' as reality, and therefore it IS reality to him. brings up the concept that reality is merely relative.
Inception infographic The Jason Calacanis Weblog

that graphic is pretty sweet.

 

[gtown27]

that's the cool thing about it, you get to assume what you want to. my thing was that the end, when he DIDNT check the top was because he had accepted this dream, this 'world' as reality, and therefore it IS reality to him. brings up the concept that reality is merely relative.
Inception infographic The Jason Calacanis Weblog

that graphic is pretty sweet.

What was reality in the film, though? You could never really tell? At least I couldn't. Was his dream stealing "real?"

The start of the movie made no sense. He was saying and trying to do the same thing to Saito that he was to Fischer.The plot didn't make sense, and I don't think it was supposed to.

 

[Darkstone42]

I think the bulk of the movie was a flashback. The opening scene and the ending scene were the same, and in the opening, Cobb had totally forgotten why he was where he was, saw the top spinning, and it reminded him of all of those events of the movie. By the end, Cobb has reconciled himself with his wife's death and come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter where he is anymore, he just wants to see his kids, and that's why he abandons his top.

 

[Jared]

I love the fact that this movie elicits discussion. So much of what is out there is mindless, predictable crap and/or a remake of something from the 70s/80s that wasn't all that good to begin with.

I really like the concept of this movie, and the fact that the ending could be argued and dissected until the end of time. We need more films like this that are original material. If you liked Inception and haven't seen Memento, I also highly recommend that movie. Nolan has become my favorite director. I am even excited for his version of Superman, and I don't really care for Superman.

 

[gtown27]

I think the bulk of the movie was a flashback. The opening scene and the ending scene were the same, and in the opening, Cobb had totally forgotten why he was where he was, saw the top spinning, and it reminded him of all of those events of the movie. By the end, Cobb has reconciled himself with his wife's death and come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter where he is anymore, he just wants to see his kids, and that's why he abandons his top.

Nice interpretation...but the start of the movie and the rest of the plot still didn't make sense to me.

Yeah, the very first scene could be a flash back...but the next five scenes Cobb and 3rd rock from the sun kid are trying to incept Saito? Right? They were trying to get something "out of his safe." Then Saito told Cobb that if he got information from Fischer by an inception blah, blah, then he'd get him back to his children. That never added up. That was all just a big pointless scenario.

The movie was a dream.

 

[pixburgher66]

Nice interpretation...but the start of the movie and the rest of the plot still didn't make sense to me.

Yeah, the very first scene could be a flash back...but the next five scenes Cobb and 3rd rock from the sun kid are trying to incept Saito? Right? They were trying to get something "out of his safe." Then Saito told Cobb that if he got information from Fischer by an inception blah, blah, then he'd get him back to his children. That never added up. That was all just a big pointless scenario.

The movie was a dream.

well, the first half of the movie isn't important to the actual plot, because it's really just there to explaint he process, what inception is, what each person is responsible for, etc. the 'plot' doesn't really start until the last third.