Inception Film Analysis Essay

Inception came out to theaters last 2010. It is an action, adventure and sci-fi film starring Leonardo DiCaprio (Cobb), Joseph Gordon Levitt (Arthur) and Ellen Page (Ariadne). The movie revolves around Cobb, whose job is to steal information from the minds of people through their dreams. He was given the task to perform the reverse called Inception on a businessman named Fischer in exchange for having the charges against him dropped and going back to America to finally see his children again.

In the process of doing his job, Mal (Cobb’s wife who already passed away) keeps on appearing in the dreams as a projection of Cobb’s subconscious and becomes a danger to Cobb and his team. Christopher Nolan Born in London in 1970, Christopher Nolan began making films at the age of seven using his father’s super 8mm camera and an assortment of male-action figures. He graduated to making films involving real people, and his super 8mm surreal short ‘tarantella’ was shown on PBS’ ‘image union’ in 1989.

Chris studied English Literature at University College London while starting to make 16mm films at the college film society.

His short film ‘larceny’ was shown at the Cambridge Film Festival in 1996, and his other 16mm shorts include a three- minute surreal film called “doodlebug. ” He directed other genuis films such as Following, Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins, The Prestige, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises. Christopher Nolan usually starts his movies by introducing the main character/s with a Close-up shot of their hands. He is known for making use of flashbacks or scenes from the end of the movie as an opening.

The movies that he directs are also usually about characters who have psychological disorders or who develop a physical or psychological handicap throughout the film. In the case of Inception, the lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio wakes up on the shore with his hands trying to reach or point out to his children who were playing with the sand. This scene reappears again in the end and plays an important role to explain the essence of the movie. Finally, Mal represents the psychologically deranged character since she was not able to tell the difference between reality and dreams anymore thus leading to her death.

The scenes altogether is about seven minutes long. Cobb and Ariadne go into a fourth dream layer and try to find Mal because she has captured Fischer. Mal is still trying to convince Cobb that he does not know what reality is anymore but Cobb is very certain that Mal is just a projection of his subconscious. This is also the part when Cobb confesses the reason behind his projection of Mal and his feeling of guilt. This is the essence of the scene- letting the audience know what Cobb was feeling inside. The first Inception actually took place when Cobb tried to plant an idea in Mal’s mind.

Mal could not accept the fact that they were still in a dream so Cobb went deep into her mind and made her think that her world was not real and that death was the only way to come back to reality. When they awoke, Mal felt as if she was possessed by an idea – an idea that her world is still not real. She felt as if she was still dreaming so she killed herself again in the real world. By telling this truth that Cobb has been keeping, he is now then able to let go of the idea of Mal. This scene explains Cobb’s motive in pursuing the task given to him.

It was not only to come back to America and see his children but also to be able to let go of Mal and the fact that she has passed away. It also introduces to the audience what the root of everything is – discovering Inception that lead to Mal’s death. The scene revolves around Cobb and Mal talking while Ariadne listens to their conversation. As the audience, we see what is happening through the point of view of Ariadne. Cobb and Ariadne are the protagonists whose goal is to find Fischer so they could continue with their mission. Mal acts as an antagonist and prevents them from reaching their goal.

She has captured Fischer and is only willing to give him up in exchange for Cobb staying with her. In the course of their dialogue, Mal asked Cobb what he was feeling. Cobb explained that he was feeling so much guilt because he was the one who caused Mal to question her reality. When they were stuck in a dream, he wanted to help her realize that they were still in a dream so he planted this idea in her mind not knowing that the idea would still linger after she awoke. This confrontation is a way of Cobb breaking free from the guilt he has kept for a long time. Upon finding out, Mal feels betrayed.

On the other hand, Ariadne is also shocked by the confession of Cobb. Their relationships intertwine except between Ariadne and Mal who seem to have no connection at all. When the flashback started, there had been a detachment mostly from the part of Mal because of her delusion but at one point, we can also see the relationship of the couple being intimate and personal. Mal still wants Cobb to keep their promise of being together despite having him performed inception on her. At the beginning of the scene, Ariadne and Cobb expect to find and get Fischer from Mal and Mal expected Cobb to stay and believe that she was real.

In the end, they all got what they wanted except for Mal. Cobb being a really skilled mind extractor, was so sure that Mal is not real and that in reality, she is already gone. Mal was not successful in her attempt to make him stay. Ariadne was able to give herself and Fischer the “kick” while Cobb stayed and went into limbo to find Saito, another member of their team who died in the third dream layer. He was also able to reach his underlying goal – which was to talk to Mal, accept that they cannot be together anymore and let her go.