Like most of you, I've been reading a lot about Inception all weekend long. Some, like Roger Ebert's latest journal entry, have discussed the film's critical reception and fan reaction to said reception. Others have gone into great depth discussing not just its meaning but whether it all makes sense. The most heated discussions have revolved, surprisingly, around the reception while the most loathsome have been generated by the questions seemingly raised by the film's final shot and its few "logical" conclusions. Going into the film, I had little doubt Nolan would wind up making a film that would polarize but I had no idea how severe the rift would be and all because of that damn, infernal top.
For those still puzzled by the film and its resolution, let me ask: If the top was origami, would it have all made more sense?
Christopher Nolan has acknowledged in the past that "Blade Runner" is among his favorite films and the final shot in his "Inception" is every bit an homage to the end of Ridley Scott's sci-fi neo-noir. The significance on the origami unicorn which Gaff leaves behind for Deckard to purposely discover has been the subject of many debates over whether or not Harrison Ford's detective was a replicant or human, much like Dom Cobb's spinning top purposely plants a seed of doubt in the viewer during "Inception's" final moments. Was it all a dream? Is Cobb still stuck in limbo? These are questions many will find themselves asking to be sure but I think the most important thing the audience should be questioning is the nature of our own reality itself.
When the movie ended I felt played to be sure like only a master filmmaker can play an audience but I also felt a certain sense of comfort, the kind of comfort you get after hearing someone you respect express an opinion you agree with. Even though he trades in the big budget world of blockbuster filmmaking, Nolan is very much a provocateur. "The Dark Knight" was a herald for his sensibilities and "Inception" proves the point-this is a filmmaker interested in challenging our viewpoints at all times, be it in a comic book movie or a suspense thriller.
I don't think it's fair to throw around phrases like "dream logic" when describing the film's structure. On closer inspection, the film's plotting is air tight, with numerous call backs and tiny moments that, if missed, may lead people in the wrong direction when trying to decipher it. To call into question Nolan's intentions or Cobb's true state and the nature of what we have just seen veers on the banal and inane. The characters are always very much in jeopardy even when under deep layers of subconscious. Nolan sets up the rules of the game early on when describing what happens to a mind under heavy sedation-lost in limbo until the brain turns to mush. I very much feel that "Inception" is less a puzzle to be figured out and more a labyrinth, much like the one Ariadne draws for Cobb in order to win his confidence (and secure a job on his team). From Wikipedia:
In colloquial English labyrinth is generally synonymous with maze, but many contemporary scholars observe a distinction between the two: maze refers to a complex branching (multicursal) puzzle with choices of path and direction; while a single-path (unicursal) labyrinth has only a single, non-branching path, which leads to the center. A labyrinth in this sense has an unambiguous route to the center and back and is not designed to be difficult to navigate.[2]
Think back to the film's first scene-we're at a beach, waves crashing onto sand. Cobb lays face down and is taken to a stately palace where he is greeted by a very old Asian man, asking whether or not he has come to kill him. We are then thrust into the film proper with little fanfare or proclamation. Now, recall how the film ends, how we trace Cobb's steps back home. Having finally let go of his wife Cobb begins the search for the man who will grant him freedom. We arrive at him awash on a beach, forced by gun point to a stately palace where he is greeted by a very old Asian man, asking whether or not he has come to kill him. The end is the beginning is the end is the beginning...
The final scene does not betray the integrity of the film as Nolan sets up his exit right from the get go. Rather, the film's conclusion reinforces the labyrinthine structure that we have been walking for the past two and a half hours. That Cobb seemed stumped by Ariadnne's labyrinth is all the more significant by movie's end.
Ultimately, "Inception" is not about dreams but about reality and not taking anything for granted. Nolan has made an exquisite film that pleases as much as it confounds, all told with impeccable craft and skill. Love it or hate it, one thing is for sure-"Inception" is the work of a very special filmmaker and we are lucky to be awake and watch as he dreams.
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