Christopher Nolan’s heist-driven sci-fi thriller is a masterclass in filmmaking that proves that high concept and intellectually demanding cinema can succeed as a commercially appealing blockbuster. But how has it held up after 16 years?
Inception has emerged as one the most important films of the last decade, if not the century. If that seems like a bold statement look no further than the fact that in 2025 it was inducted into the American Library of Congress’s National Film Registry. A collection where historically significant films are preserved for future generations. But of course you can own it on the best consumer format available next to the 35mm film it was shot in, which is 4K Blu-ray.
Compared to other Nolan films, it’s a relief that the rules-based narrative is slower paced than many of his other films, some of which have a capacity to escalate rapidly to a hysterical delirium. But of course, the real secret to it’s immense popularity is the emotional core of the storytelling.
Leonardo DiCaprio is the lead role of Don Cobb, a professional notarised on the black market for his specialist skills in extraction; the art of obtaining valuable information by entering a target’s dreams. Cobb is haunted by the guilt of the events surrounding the death of his wife, a weight that is compounded by the estrangement of his children. This is one of DiCaprio’s finer roles, he makes it easy to identify with the emotions he’s experiencing and understand the motivations of his character and why he shifts between dreams and reality.
Cobb’s dreamworld is plagued by the memory of his deceased wife Mal, played by Marion Cotillard. She’s both intensely chilling and enticing as she invites Cobb to venture deeper into the dreamworld they created together.
In order to be united with his children again he’s tasked with one final job; planting an idea within a target’s mind, the “Inception” by Saito (Ken Watanabe), the calm and wealthy energy mogul whose empire depends on this inception taking place.
Cobb’s right hand man is Arthur, played by a somewhat cardboard Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Arthur is perhaps the only thing of limited dimension in this film, Levitt is playing the same character type as his role of the stern-faced good cop in The Dark Knight Rises a couple of years later.
Cobb’s team is otherwise comprised of a superb array of cast members; Elliot Page is the naïve university student tasked with building the dreamscapes, who struggles to understand the strange new worlds they’ve been plunged into. Tom Hardy is the slick and witty forger who impersonates people familiar to the targets inside the dreams. There’s a vivid Bond-esque scene filmed in the snow covered mountains of the Canadian Rockies which leaves you wondering why Tom Hardy couldn’t be the next James Bond, particularly as directing a Bond film is an idea Nolan has expressed interest in.
There’s also excellent supporting cast from Cillian Murphy’s Robert Fischer, the disappointing heir in whose mind the inception must be placed. Fischer emits tangibly the pains of mourning and rejection. Dileep Rao is also excellent as Yusef, the chemist who designs the compounds that facilitate the dream sharing states.
A common theme in Nolan’s films, the perception and dilation of time is central to the narrative of Inception. To plant the inception, the team must dive into a dream within a dream. Once inside a dream, time expands exponentially and as they move deeper so do the borders of dreams and reality.
The film won 4 Academy Awards at the 83rd Academy Awards in 2011. The sound editing and mixing are where Inception won two Academy Awards, and as soon as dreams start collapsing, you’ll see why. Hans Zimmer’s original soundtrack adds another expertly articulated dimension to the emotional depth, action and drama.
Another Academy Award was for the breathtaking cinematography by the great Wally Pfister, which features absolutely stunning visuals. Whether it’s the twilight waves crashing in slow motion on the beach or the bustling cityscapes you’ll feel immersed. It goes hand in hand with the set design, and both are flawless.
The other Academy Award went to Inception for it’s visual effects. Practical and digital effects are blended seamlessly in a way that has the rare quality of propping up rather than detracting from the screenplay. This is probably the reason the effects have held up over time. There’s highly imaginative and symbolic references in the dreamscapes with Escher inspired puzzles and paradoxes on the digital side, and gravity defying feats of engineering and illusion on the practical side.
The dream sharing escapism is a clever allegory for addiction, where characters sacrifice their realities for their dreams. This is characterised mainly through Cobb’s projection of Mal who represents deep-seated trauma and guilt which are the primary drivers of substance abuse, but there are many other parallels. A highlight is when Cobb enters a den of inequity filled with people dosed on sleeping chemicals, he looks at them with empathy rather than judgement. This is all handled with a subtlety that keeps this theme peripheral to the central narrative.
The expert professionalism that has gone into every aspect of the film making adds up to a subliminal massage of the senses, emotions and intellect that rewards repeat viewing.
Author: Dan, Kingston Store
