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- First reviewMarch 21, 2009
- Last reviewJuly 19, 2010
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MrMovieCellPhone's Reviews
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Poor Reception For Inception
PostedJuly 19, 2010
MrMovieCellPhone
from Burbank, CA
If there's one thing that I came out of "Inception" knowing for sure it's that Christopher Nolan has got some brilliant ideas in that head of his- most of which have trouble getting out and translating to the big screen without losing some aspect of effective storytelling. Like "The Prestige," "Inception" is an idea being pitched for the majority of its running time while the dialogue is almost entirely expositional to the point where even character's emotions are explained rather than emoted as they happen. It's almost as if you're watching a tutorial for a dream program that uses striking visuals to keep your attention. The ultimate difference between the two films is that "Inception" is better, if only because its idea is better (and maybe because it doesn't have its own version of "The Illusionist" to challenge it), but they are both devoid of the kind of emotion that makes for a completely satisfying experience. Yes, "Inception" engages the mind, (it better for its world to make one iota of sense) but it's heart rarely beats enough for it to be called alive. Nolan insists that the events that transpire here are what happen to one after he or she sleeps, but death or at least lifelessness would more accurately describe what shows up on screen afterward.
The acting is serviceable, but unremarkable- the script is as much to blame for that as the actors are. The characters here serve as plot devices, making their fates (which aren't in much jeopardy to begin with when in the dream state) less worried about than in the usual reality-based thriller. Leonardo DiCaprio's Cobb is a Cliffsnotes version of the character he played in Martin Scorsese's "Shutter Island," wherein both are haunted by deceased wives while attempting to navigate through elaborate mazes of the mind; one more convincingly than the other might I add (I will be more devastated to see his performance in "Inception" recognized with an Oscar nomination than not at all for the deeply tortured portrayal he gives in "Shutter Island"). The only performance with some weight in it belongs to Marion Cotillard, who plays an imprisoned memory of Cobb's late wife with frightening tragedy. If nominations are given in the category of acting for this movie (and at this point, I imagine that there will be many), hers better be the only one mentioned because it's the only one that's deserved if forced to pick one.
For all that's lacking in the script's emotional depth, Hans Zimmer's score makes up for with instrumental pieces of sweeping intensity that tell a deeper story than what's shown. There were moments in the film when all I wanted was for one of the characters to shut up and let the music tell the story- it's less pretentious that way, not to mention more soothing- but instead speeches were only intermittently muted by Zimmer's fog-horn interludes.
As for the cinematography- it's expectantly exceptional, although I'm still a little bit underwhelmed by Nolan's vision of the dream. From the trailers, I was expecting more of what was shown in terms of cities folding into each other, rising stair cases, and bulldozing freight trains driving through crowded intersections. Instead what we get is only a slightly different version of reality- which I don't mind- to each his own- but my dreams tend to be a little crazier... and would have sent Cobb to the token machine at least twenty-three times before reaching a lengthier stretch of continuous game play.
By now I've probably painted an overall negative response to "Inception," but I think I should make a clear point of saying flat-out that I was still impressed. There's some ingenuity crafted in the action here that hasn't been seen since "The Matrix" and the idea, although overly explained in my opinion, breathes new life into a genre that has become as stale as that of the zombies (the heist movie is so formulaic that it has tendency to bore rather than excite). It's biggest mistake as a heist movie though is its expository conversation about the heist itself throughout the entire movie between all of its characters! I didn't care about any of them and the emotional whalop Nolan expects from his audience at the end fizzes out to an amusing gimmick that causes us to question the reality of everything we've just seen.
In the end I was expecting more and perhaps I'll get more from a second viewing, but at this point, as my first impression- I'm disappointed with the final product.
GRADE: B-
Yes, I recommend this movie.
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I Love You, I Love You, Man
PostedMarch 21, 2009
MrMovieCellPhone
from Burbank, CA
I Love You, Man, is the newest wave of comedies that's inspired by the recent success of Judd Apatow, but even with having stolen two of his muses (the reliably funny Paul Rudd and Jason Segel), a certain honesty gets washed up by distracting immature, Adam Sandler-esque humor. Nonetheless, it contains plenty of subtle chuckles (Rudd's awkward lingo) and a few laugh-out-loud moments (Rudd and Segal-created). It's hard not to love I Love You, Man.
Yes, I recommend this movie.
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