The treacherous architecture of dreams

FILM: INCEPTION (12)

RATING: FOUR STARS

You can’t exactly fault director Christopher Nolan for lack of narrative planning. His films – from the high-concept amnesia-thriller Memento, down to his already-legendary revamping of the Batman saga and the tricksy magician period piece The Prestige – aren’t exactly focused on winning over hearts and minds: they tap into the chess (or Sudoku) player in all of us, teasing our brain with intricate, puzzle-laden plotlines that run on highly sombre themes. As such, they are constructed with a spider-web like intricacy, their logical unravelling an integral part of their fun.

But this is only half of the picture, particularly after Batman Begins and, more significantly, its billion-dollar raking sequel, The Dark Knight. Now that his touch has pretty much assured a box office success, his ideas have been allowed to flourish in highly polished, generously proportioned studio films (a far cry from his 1998 shoestring budgeted debut, Following) – securing him a position previously afforded to the likes of a Stanley Kubrick or a Francis Ford Coppola… i.e., that ever-tenuous role of populist artist, juggling both the high and low brow at equal turns.

And if we were to take The Prestige as an example of Hollywood ‘allowing’ the British to-be auteur creative freedom after the success of Batman Begins, Inception, his first film post Dark Knight, sees Nolan snug in his new throne, his most outlandish ideas (indeed, ones that have been stewing for a good nine years), fully indulged.

Dreams feel real while we’re in them – a simple fact that has enabled Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) to craft a technology that allows him to steal ideas from people’s subconscious, landing him a coveted position within the world of corporate espionage… but also costing him his nationality and the custody of his children, as an incident related to the (highly illegal) practice has had him blacklisted. When Saito (Ken Watanabe), a powerful businessman, hires Cobb and his partner Arthur (Joseph-Gordon Levitt) to perform the reverse of what they’re accustomed to – inception: implanting an idea as opposed to stealing one – on Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy), a business rival, Cobb sees an opportunity for redemption. He assembles a team consisting of the young architect Ariadne (Ellen Page), impersonator Eames, (Tom Hardy) and chemist Yusuf (Dileep Rao). The high-risk mission is, however, complicated by Cobb’s own psychological baggage, as a disturbing manifestation from his past threatens to sabotage the operation.

The biggest and most satisfying trick is that Nolan has crafted what is essentially a heist film, despite the potential for all out chaos within a dreamscape setting. As such, the pace is taut (downright tense towards the end), and the dizzying rules we need to swallow in order to get to grips with the logic of the main concept feel less like a burden and more of point of immersion: it forces you to get involved and, juxtaposed against the all-encompassing architectural delight of the settings (this is definitely one for IMAX viewing), each shot holds you captive.

Naturally, the dazzle comes at a price… in this case, it’s the absence of any real emotional connection apart from Cobb’s (still highly archetypal) quest. In Nolan’s world, it is taken for granted that businessmen can wipe criminal records clean with just a phone call, and ‘types’ can instantly be made available to stand in for whatever cog the intricate, well-oiled narrative machinery requires. Luckily the eclectic, international cast automatically add character. DiCaprio is on top form, finally weaned out of pretty-boy mode thanks to his years with Scorcese. But it is the young ‘uns who really provide the spark: Page, an undeniable natural, brings a sensitiveness that lesser actresses would probably have missed, and her chemistry with Gordon-Levitt, an equally promising rising star, is a welcome break from the whizzing architectonics of the plot. Top points for comic relief, however, go to Tom Hardy, whose roguish grin is a great leveller  when things get too abstract.

As the third act blazes to a conclusion, the remaining running time focuses squarely on a single set piece, beautifully utilising the idea that dream-time is infinitely longer than real-time. Much built up during trailers and interviews, it involves striking images of floating bodies in zero gravity, and Gordon Levitt engaging in some serious Spider-Man moves across, over and around hotel corridors. The fact that it not only lives up to expectations but also feels like an organic part of the overall experience is a testament to Nolan’s clockwork-like construction.

Inception’s dreams leave no room for psychedelic visions. In their place, however, is a reminder of why we love going to the cinema: an instantly riveting original idea, spectacularly told through dazzling visuals assuring us that for once, the extravagant budget may not have been so extravagant after all. In a season crammed (as they are all sadly turning out to be) with remakes and sequels or remakes, this is a remarkable feat indeed.