Inception

A couple of years ago Christopher Nolan directed the best film adaptation of a comic book. He set the bar pretty high for himself. Now he has gone and blown it completely away.

Since the dawn of cinema film makers have revelled in the world of the dream. It lets them use their creativity to explore a surreal world and let their mind wonder to some bizarre situations. There is though the chance that they can go a bit overboard and alienate their audience with weird imagery just for the sake of it. At the core of this film is an old fashioned heist movie. But instead of breaking into a safe to steal something they are breaking in to put something in. Around this core premise, Nolan has crafted a wondrous dream scape. While it is a bit surreal it is still rooted in a sense of reality. Rules about the dream world have been established and adhered to so you know where you stand. The dream world Nolan has created is a visual masterpiece. It is one of the best uses of special effects in a movie. There are some scenes that are simply stunning to behold and should be seen on as big a screen as you can find. All this wonderful imagery is nothing without a brilliant story to back it up. As I said it is a regular heist film in principle and I was reminded of the 'Ocean's' Trilogy as I was watching it, but it is so much more. Unlike most heist film where you can just sit back and watch the fun take place, this film requires you to think and have your mind challenged. Something your average blockbuster film does not do. Much like Danny Ocean, Cobb is doing this not just for the money but for his family. He has lost his wife, but she still haunts his life in a very dangerous way. So he is just trying to get back to his children. This is a rare cliched moment in the film where he is doing 'one last job'. It's it good to have a great story and great visuals but you need to put it together properly. The editing of this film is simply amazing. The way the heist is inter cut at the end was a joy to behold. Not only making it emotional but incredibly thrilling as well. I only have one minor problem with the film and that is I would have liked them to explain the mechanics of how they are able to enter the dream world. How that thing in the suitcase works. But considering how complicated the film is I'm surprised we'd be able to understand it.

Leonardo DiCaprio is an excellent actor and this film continues that streak. He can really bring out the emotion in any situation. I just wish he would do a comedy as he is always a bit too serious. Leo's ensemble co-stars are equally excellent. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is an actor I have been a fan of for many years now since '3rd Rock From The Sun'. He can play all types of roles and get to do some more action here. Tom Hardy provides some great comedy relief and I hope we see him in more films. I wish we knew more about Ellen Pages character and why Cobb chooses her to be on the team. The real stand out though is Marion Cotillard. Ever since she came to our attention in 'La Vie En Rose' she has has gone from strength to strength and given us some amazing performances. Here she must give a huge range of emotions as our perception of her changes because it is based on Cobb's memories.

It does not happen all that often but we sometimes get a film which is cinematic perfection. A film which is perfect in every way. This is one such film. All those awards that alluded Christopher Nolan after 'The Dark Knight' should now come his way. A rare thing in the cinema that is both intelligent and thrilling. Please go see this film.