In Review: Inception

Most movies with midnight screenings these days seem to be almost all sequels. Don't get me wrong, some are worth it. The Harry Potter movies have been worth it. Also, "Lord of the Rings" and a few others. While great movies in their own rights, both were part of franchises. Great? Yes. But been there done that. Does anyone have original ideas anymore? Actually, yes. Ladies and gentleman, for your consideration, I offer Christopher Nolan's "Inception."

At last, here is a movie that is not a sequel, remake, retread, etc. Every frame of this movie is original. It's uncharted territory from beginning to end. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.

The plot: well... that's a little hard to explain, but in a good way. It's one of the most intellectually demanding movies I have ever seen. If you see these movie more than once you still may not totally understand everything. Don't let that keep you away from the theater. I have never been so glad to be perplexed by a movie in all my life.

The plot is a labyrinth, but I will attempt to explain. Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is an "extractor": a person with the ability to go into people's dreams and get vital information. In a sense, he is a dream/thought thief. This make him in demand in the world of corporate espionage, for better or worse. Well, mostly worse. He wants to get home and put some of the trouble this career choice has caused him behind. In order to do that he must do one last job. In order to do it he will have to pull off the rare art of "inception." Rather than merely going into people's dreams, inception is the ability to go into someone's dream and plant an idea making them think it is actually their idea. It gets more complicated from there, but that's it in a nutshell. I am still digesting the complexity of the storyline myself. Anyone who claims to understand this movie completely is full of it. What then follows is Cobb assembling a team for the "dream heist" for lack of a better term, including an "architect" who has to design the look and feel of the dreams (making a mental maze more or less).

If I try to explain the whole plot I will never finish writing. Suffice it to say I do not recommend getting up to go to the concession stand during this movie. If you miss one detail you may be lost permanently. Sit back and prepare to be engrossed. Unlike most of the summer movies out there, this one demands that you bring your thinking cap.

"Inception" cements director Christopher Nolan as one of the great directors of his generation. From his mind-bending film "Memento" to "The Prestige," Nolan has proven to be one of the most innovative minds working in Hollywood. I hope he has a lot of films left in him, because each one has been a total surprise and a breath of fresh air. If you want a movie with action, suspense, and an intellectually demanding screenplay, this is the movie for you. It's only July, but I think I may have just seen the best movie of the year. SEE IT!