Review:Christopher Nolan’s newest movie Inception blows away the summer competition with a film that may not be perfect, but is pretty close to it.

If you have any plans on seeing Christopher Nolan’s mind-bending new movie, you should do so quickly, because this is sure to be the type of movie that has people standing around the metaphorical water cooler and discussing it- especially the ending.

Let me start out by saying that Inception is one of the best movies I have seen this year, and ranks among the best movies I have seen over the last few years. Don’t be fooled by the fact that I am a tech guy with deep sci-fi leanings which might make you think that I would be predisposed to liking this movie anyway. Nolan’s sci-fi slanted, trippy, mind-blowing film is certain to be the type of movie that won’t be easily defined, and will appeal to fans of any genre. Years from now, video stores (assuming there are any video stores left years from now) will likely have to think long and hard about whether to label this movie as sci-fi, action, or even drama before assigning it a place on the shelves. It is a movie that defies easy analysis, but still manages to entertain.

Inception is Nolan’s reward for the success of the Batman films. Without the critical and commercial success of his previous blockbusters, it is hard to imagine a studio shelling out the kind of money that Warner Bros. handed over to Nolan for what is essentially a passion project- roughly $160 million. By comparison, 2008’s The Dark Knight cost $185 million and it was a tested franchise with massive buzz even before the script was finished. Inception is a different kind of animal.

It must have been an interesting pitch to Warner Bros. studio heads. Nolan likely went in and said something along the lines of “I have this idea. It’s a movie about a group that can go into dreams and steal ideas, but the subject can fight back and destroy the dream world. Oh, and I need around a $150 million.“ Once the puzzled looks and taunting laughs subsided, someone probably reminded them that Nolan had just grossed over $1 billion with The Dark Knight, and that was that.

With Inception, Nolan did exactly what he intended, received the exact performances from some of this generations best actors and actresses, and created a movie that will likely generate Oscar buzz. Not everyone will agree, and some people are likely to seriously hate parts of this movie, but those voices are likely to disappear beneath the avalanche of well deserved praise that Inception is likely to garner.

As to what Inception is all about, this review will be spoiler free, but if you want to be completely in the dark about the story, you might want to stop reading here and skip down two paragraphs. In some ways, it is very much like The Matrix- not so much in the story (although there are a few similarities), just in the sense that to explain the world of Inception robs a bit of the fun from the movie, and undermines the deliberately vague nature of the trailers that have managed to walk the thin line between giving away too much, and still being appealing. Most people going into the movie have only a vague idea about what they are about to see, so if you wish your eyes to remain completely virgin, scroll down past the next two paragraphs.

At its heart, behind the fancy sets and the insane worlds, Inception is a heist movie. Or at least, that is the driving force behind the plot. Leonardo DiCaprio (Titanic, Shutter Island) plays Cobb, the Extractor, a man who enters other people’s dreams to steal their secrets. Cobb is hired to steal the secrets of Saito, played by Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai, Letters From Iwo Jima) , a businessman that turns the tables on Cobb, and then hires him for never-done-before job of inception- the planting of an idea in a subject’s mind. Cobb accepts the job based on a promise from Saito, who tells him that he is able to make a murder charge against Cobb disappear so he can return to his family.

Cobb then sets out to form his team that consists of Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, GI Joe) as Arthur, the point man, Ellen Page (Juno, Smart People) as Ariadne, the architect, Tom Hardy (Star Trek: Nemesis, the upcoming Mad Max: Fury Road) as Eames, the forger, and Dileep Rao (Avatar, Drag Me To Hell) as Yusuf, the chemist. Together the group is tasked with implanting an idea in the mind of Robert Fischer, Jr., played by Cillian Murphy (28 Days Later, Sunshine), the son of an energy baron, and Saito’s main rival. The story takes an unexpected turn, when Cobb’s wife Mal, played by Marion Cotillard (La Vie En Rose, Public Enemies), continues to haunt Cobb’s dreams.

Ok, everyone back with me now? Good. It will be somewhat shocking if Inception is not nominated for several technical awards, including best special effects. There might be movies coming later this year that will be comparable, but it is hard to imagine anything surpassing the visual masterpiece that Nolan presents. Each scene seems to top the last, and people will probably be talking about Gordon-Leavitt’s zero-g fight for a while to come.

Another Oscar nod is likely to come in the form of best original screenplay. Hollywood isn’t exactly known for taking huge risks, as most of the biggest budgets go to sequels and adaptations of existing properties. If nothing else, Inception is remarkable for the fact that it is incredibly original. Everything on the screen is unique. If you are a fan of movies in general, you owe it to yourself to watch Inception for that simple fact alone. Even people that end up hating this movie will likely applaud its originality. The movie succeeds on so many levels that it would be nice- albeit somewhat naive- to think that studios and other filmmakers might see the benefits of green lighting more movies like this that are based on original ideas.

That doesn’t mean that this movie is perfect. As much as it pains me to say, there are a few flaws in Nolan’s diamond. The ending is likely to split some people. It makes you think and question what you have just seen, which some people will love, and others hate. For the record, I absolutely loved it, but it is possible that others won’t. The biggest problem, however, comes from the character of Cobb’s wife, Mal.

Without spoiling anything, which is difficult because the truth about her character becomes a vital piece of the plot as well as the character of Cobb, the character of Mal is based upon the emotions she is intended to illicit. She is designed to help you relate and connect to the character of Cobb, but her scenes are few and far between, and she is little more than a plot device at times. In some parts, this is deliberate, but in the instances that the audience are meant to connect to her- and by proxy to Cobb- it just falls a bit flat.

If Nolan has a flaw in his work, it is his representation of women in movies. In both Batman films, the character of Rachel Dawes, whether she was played by Katie Holmes or Maggie Gyllenhaal, could almost have been entirely removed from the films and neither movie would have suffered- not counting the plot elements the character effects. Two-Face would not have been possible without the character of Dawes, but beyond that there isn’t much to her. It is the same in The Prestige, where the women are all used to further the plot and add to the surprise ending, and I will give a dollar to anyone who can remember anything that Hillary Swank did in Insomnia. Even in Momento, Carrie-Anne Moss is only there to support the story. The talented Ellen Page also seems to be in Inception more to help the audience by asking questions of Cobb, than to stand on her own. You never really understand her reasons or motivations, and beyond her interaction with Cobb, she has very little to do with the movie.

But that is all nitpicking, something that is easy to do with Inception simply because it is the type of movie that will stick with you for quite awhile and make you think. Odds are, a good deal of the business for this movie will come from repeat viewings. I am already thinking about when I can go again.

This is the movie Nolan wanted to make, and yet again, he proves why he is one of the most respected filmmakers working today. It might be a bit of a long shot, but there is a very real chance that Nolan will receive an Oscar-nomination for the best director, and he could even win. He deserves it. Overall, Inception is HIGHLY recommended.


The Good

Almost everything. The visuals, the acting, the direction, and the incredible originality. The technical side is also stellar, from the music, to the sound effects. The ending that will have some people raving.


The Bad

Some under developed characters, especially with the women. The plot sometimes gives way to the visuals. The ending that will have some people screaming.

Inception Review

Review:Christopher Nolan’s newest movie Inception blows away the summer competition with a film that may not be perfect, but is pretty close to it.

If you have any plans on seeing Christopher Nolan’s mind-bending new movie, you should do so quickly, because this is sure to be the type of movie that has people standing around the metaphorical water cooler and discussing it- especially the ending.

Let me start out by saying that Inception is one of the best movies I have seen this year, and ranks among the best movies I have seen over the last few years. Don’t be fooled by the fact that I am a tech guy with deep sci-fi leanings which might make you think that I would be predisposed to liking this movie anyway. Nolan’s sci-fi slanted, trippy, mind-blowing film is certain to be the type of movie that won’t be easily defined, and will appeal to fans of any genre. Years from now, video stores (assuming there are any video stores left years from now) will likely have to think long and hard about whether to label this movie as sci-fi, action, or even drama before assigning it a place on the shelves. It is a movie that defies easy analysis, but still manages to entertain.

Inception is Nolan’s reward for the success of the Batman films. Without the critical and commercial success of his previous blockbusters, it is hard to imagine a studio shelling out the kind of money that Warner Bros. handed over to Nolan for what is essentially a passion project- roughly $160 million. By comparison, 2008’s The Dark Knight cost $185 million and it was a tested franchise with massive buzz even before the script was finished. Inception is a different kind of animal.

It must have been an interesting pitch to Warner Bros. studio heads. Nolan likely went in and said something along the lines of “I have this idea. It’s a movie about a group that can go into dreams and steal ideas, but the subject can fight back and destroy the dream world. Oh, and I need around a $150 million.“ Once the puzzled looks and taunting laughs subsided, someone probably reminded them that Nolan had just grossed over $1 billion with The Dark Knight, and that was that.

With Inception, Nolan did exactly what he intended, received the exact performances from some of this generations best actors and actresses, and created a movie that will likely generate Oscar buzz. Not everyone will agree, and some people are likely to seriously hate parts of this movie, but those voices are likely to disappear beneath the avalanche of well deserved praise that Inception is likely to garner.

As to what Inception is all about, this review will be spoiler free, but if you want to be completely in the dark about the story, you might want to stop reading here and skip down two paragraphs. In some ways, it is very much like The Matrix- not so much in the story (although there are a few similarities), just in the sense that to explain the world of Inception robs a bit of the fun from the movie, and undermines the deliberately vague nature of the trailers that have managed to walk the thin line between giving away too much, and still being appealing. Most people going into the movie have only a vague idea about what they are about to see, so if you wish your eyes to remain completely virgin, scroll down past the next two paragraphs.

At its heart, behind the fancy sets and the insane worlds, Inception is a heist movie. Or at least, that is the driving force behind the plot. Leonardo DiCaprio (Titanic, Shutter Island) plays Cobb, the Extractor, a man who enters other people’s dreams to steal their secrets. Cobb is hired to steal the secrets of Saito, played by Ken Watanabe (The Last Samurai, Letters From Iwo Jima) , a businessman that turns the tables on Cobb, and then hires him for never-done-before job of inception- the planting of an idea in a subject’s mind. Cobb accepts the job based on a promise from Saito, who tells him that he is able to make a murder charge against Cobb disappear so he can return to his family.

Cobb then sets out to form his team that consists of Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, GI Joe) as Arthur, the point man, Ellen Page (Juno, Smart People) as Ariadne, the architect, Tom Hardy (Star Trek: Nemesis, the upcoming Mad Max: Fury Road) as Eames, the forger, and Dileep Rao (Avatar, Drag Me To Hell) as Yusuf, the chemist. Together the group is tasked with implanting an idea in the mind of Robert Fischer, Jr., played by Cillian Murphy (28 Days Later, Sunshine), the son of an energy baron, and Saito’s main rival. The story takes an unexpected turn, when Cobb’s wife Mal, played by Marion Cotillard (La Vie En Rose, Public Enemies), continues to haunt Cobb’s dreams.

Ok, everyone back with me now? Good. It will be somewhat shocking if Inception is not nominated for several technical awards, including best special effects. There might be movies coming later this year that will be comparable, but it is hard to imagine anything surpassing the visual masterpiece that Nolan presents. Each scene seems to top the last, and people will probably be talking about Gordon-Leavitt’s zero-g fight for a while to come.

Another Oscar nod is likely to come in the form of best original screenplay. Hollywood isn’t exactly known for taking huge risks, as most of the biggest budgets go to sequels and adaptations of existing properties. If nothing else, Inception is remarkable for the fact that it is incredibly original. Everything on the screen is unique. If you are a fan of movies in general, you owe it to yourself to watch Inception for that simple fact alone. Even people that end up hating this movie will likely applaud its originality. The movie succeeds on so many levels that it would be nice- albeit somewhat naive- to think that studios and other filmmakers might see the benefits of green lighting more movies like this that are based on original ideas.

That doesn’t mean that this movie is perfect. As much as it pains me to say, there are a few flaws in Nolan’s diamond. The ending is likely to split some people. It makes you think and question what you have just seen, which some people will love, and others hate. For the record, I absolutely loved it, but it is possible that others won’t. The biggest problem, however, comes from the character of Cobb’s wife, Mal.

Without spoiling anything, which is difficult because the truth about her character becomes a vital piece of the plot as well as the character of Cobb, the character of Mal is based upon the emotions she is intended to illicit. She is designed to help you relate and connect to the character of Cobb, but her scenes are few and far between, and she is little more than a plot device at times. In some parts, this is deliberate, but in the instances that the audience are meant to connect to her- and by proxy to Cobb- it just falls a bit flat.

If Nolan has a flaw in his work, it is his representation of women in movies. In both Batman films, the character of Rachel Dawes, whether she was played by Katie Holmes or Maggie Gyllenhaal, could almost have been entirely removed from the films and neither movie would have suffered- not counting the plot elements the character effects. Two-Face would not have been possible without the character of Dawes, but beyond that there isn’t much to her. It is the same in The Prestige, where the women are all used to further the plot and add to the surprise ending, and I will give a dollar to anyone who can remember anything that Hillary Swank did in Insomnia. Even in Momento, Carrie-Anne Moss is only there to support the story. The talented Ellen Page also seems to be in Inception more to help the audience by asking questions of Cobb, than to stand on her own. You never really understand her reasons or motivations, and beyond her interaction with Cobb, she has very little to do with the movie.

But that is all nitpicking, something that is easy to do with Inception simply because it is the type of movie that will stick with you for quite awhile and make you think. Odds are, a good deal of the business for this movie will come from repeat viewings. I am already thinking about when I can go again.

This is the movie Nolan wanted to make, and yet again, he proves why he is one of the most respected filmmakers working today. It might be a bit of a long shot, but there is a very real chance that Nolan will receive an Oscar-nomination for the best director, and he could even win. He deserves it. Overall, Inception is HIGHLY recommended.


The Good

Almost everything. The visuals, the acting, the direction, and the incredible originality. The technical side is also stellar, from the music, to the sound effects. The ending that will have some people raving.


The Bad

Some under developed characters, especially with the women. The plot sometimes gives way to the visuals. The ending that will have some people screaming.

Some Words After Seeing the Movie "The Shawshank Redemption"

I have seen the movie twice. Every time I saw it I was encouraged by the chief actor Andy Dufresne' thoughts, behavior, belief in life. The movie is about a banker named Andy Duframe (Tim Robbins) who is wrongly accused of a double homicide he didn't commit. At last he was sent to Shawshank Prison for life time. In prison there is a man named Ellis Boyd 'Red' Redding (Morgan Freeman) who has an ability to deliver almost any types of contraband (except, on his own principles, hard drugs and weapons) into Shawshank Prison.
So this makes him a very important man in Shawshank Prison's social structure. And it is also the reason why he first became acquainted with Andy. Andy also befriends Red. One day he asked Red for a rock hammer and later he asked a poster. And Andy also befriends prison guards by giving them financial advice. He does it because he has a great plan in his heart. Gradually the warden (Bob Gunton) became interested in him. And he let Andy help him do shady financial scams. One day Andy heard from another prisoner, Tommy (Gil Bellows), whose former cellmate had bragged about killing a rich golfer and some hot-shot banker's wife and the banker getting jailed for it.
This is clearly the real killer of Andy's wife. And Andy tells the warden he is innocent. But the warden refuses him and tells Andy to ignore the story. The Warden then makes Tommy killed. Andy does not want to help the warden with his scam anymore. And one morning Andy is gone. The prison guards search his cell and find he dug out of the wall an escaping way with the hammer and hid the hole with the poster. Andy then takes the money accumulated from the scam (a banker's salary for 20 years) and leaves the town. The police attempt to arrest the warden who commits suicide. Red passes his parol board and reunites with Andy in a Pacific Mexican Town at last.
The theme of this movie is about hope and the power of friendship. We all need hope and also friends in our lives. Maybe there are these two things encouraging us moving forward. There sentences said by Andy impressed me much. The first one is: You know some birds are not meant to be caged; their feathers are just too bright. The second is: There is something inside, that they can't get to, that they can't touch. That's yours.
The third is: Hope is a good thing and maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies. I want to say I really like these sentences. They make me think positively and give me lots of courage and make me full of hope. I hope everyone can see the movie and I'm sure you will be driven to live positively and hopefully as Andy lives.

Movies

A Guide to Classic Movie Genres and Styles

Great Examples of Classic Movies in Every Genre

Meaning "black movie" in French, Hollywood's film noir period spanned the early 1940s to the late 1950s. Visually, black and white film noir used stark shadows and moody, dimly lit scenes. The plots combine crime, eroticism, and violence among deeply flawed men and women in morally ambiguous situations. Often drawn from hardboiled crime fiction or depictions of social problems such as gambling or alcoholism, great examples of film noir include Citizen Kane and Sunset Boulevard.

Screwball Comedies

Named for a physics-defying baseball pitch, screwball comedies put likable characters in ridiculous situations, where they behave like screwballs: erratic and unpredictable. They rely on contrast: rich vs. poor, brainy vs. dizzy, powerful vs. powerless, and above all, male vs. female. The early screwball comedies often featured superficial rich people brought down to earth by the more noble and sensible ideas of the common man. The best are marked by smooth sophistication and witty dialogue on top of plain old physical comedy. Check out His Girl Friday,It Happened One Night or Some Like it Hot.

Science Fiction and Fantasy

One of the most varied and enduringly popular genres, sci-fi and fantasy films sometimes hew closely to the underpinnings of scientific reality, and are sometimes works of pure imagination. Going back to one of the earliest silent films, A Trip to the Moon, the movies have explored space and time travel, alternate universes and realities, the microscopic world, the terrors of science run amok and the future of humanity on Earth and among the stars. They've brought us mad scientists, alien invasions and monsters from Godzilla to the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. For a great early film, try The Time Machine or Forbidden Planet.

Epics and Sagas

Ambitious and costly movies, epics peaked in the '50s and '60s with films like Cleopatra and Ben Hur. Epics span genres, and often tackle sprawling war time stories, great historical events, or multi-generational family sagas. There are epic westerns, like Once Upon a Time in the West, and epic biographies, such as The Private Life of Henry VIII. Made with enormous casts and city-sized sets before digital effects rendered the need for actual people moot, most of the great epics would be prohibitively expensive today, perhaps even the all-time box office champ, Gone With the Wind.

B-Movies

The term "B-movie" started out as a very straightforward definition. The "B" movie was simply the second half of a double bill at the theater or drive-in. Such films were made on a shoestring with little-known stars, and were often cheesy teen melodramas, sci-fi, horror or monster movies. In later years, the term has come to mean any low-budget, schlocky movie made with "B-list" stars - although many of them transcend the genre and are enjoyable, well-made films. And some of them are so bad they're laugh-out-loud funny. Try a good one, The Day the Earth Stood Still or a bad one, The Horror of Party Beach.

Movie Musicals

At their peak in the '30s, '40s and '50s, movie musicals became popular when some of the first "talkies" (Hollywood films made with sound) included musical numbers and dance routines. Movie musical styles included Busby Berkeley's "Gold Digger" revues with scantily clad showgirls, light romances with hoofers like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, as well as films of musical comedies and dramas first staged in live theater. And of course, classic Disney animated films are often musicals as well. Take a look at Fred and Ginger in Top Hat, Gene Kelly's effortless charm in Singin' in the Rain or the animated Snow White.

Westerns

A quintessentially American art form, westerns tell the story of the sprawling American frontier, with the iconic characters of the west: cowboys, gunslingers, bandits, ranchers, tycoons, saloon-keepers, floozies, settlers, Indians and military men. They span every genre. There are silent westerns like the Great Train Robbery, singing cowboys like Gene Autry, musical westerns like Paint Your Wagon, western spoofs like Cat Ballou, and "spaghetti westerns" made in Europe like Sergio Leone's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Early westerns tended to idealize the settlement of the west, but as the popularity of the genre declined in the '70s, films took a more jaundiced view of the treatment of the American Indian and the violence of the Old West.

Biographies

Often called "biopics," these movies tell the stories of saints and sinners, inventors and idealists, geniuses and generals, presidents and peasants -- the real-life figures who shaped world history. Always told with a point of view, biographies often generate controversy, and have been known to play fast and loose with the facts. Excellent classic biopics include: Yankee Doodle Dandy, the life of George M. Cohan, Lawrence of Arabia and Sergeant York.