This reality-bending and creative film is worth watching. Directed by Christopher Nolan, Inception stars renowned actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Nolan is known for directing movies such as Interstellar, Dunkirk, and several Batman movies including The Dark Knight.  

The film begins with Cobb (DiCaprio) approaching Saito (Ken Watanabe), a wealthy businessman, to make a business deal. He offers to sell Saito protection by telling him that he is the best in the world at extracting secrets from people’s dreams, and that Saito needs to protect himself from it. After refusing the deal, Saito convinces Cobb that if he can successfully create inception (putting an idea in someone’s mind and making them think the idea was their own) in the person of his choice, then he will help Cobb return to the U.S. where his children live, even though he is a fugitive and wanted in the United States. Saito wants Cobb to help him gain an advantage in his field of business, and Cobb accepts his offer and assembles an elite team for the job. 

In terms of set design, this movie is stellar.  The design is one of the most advanced sets of any movie of its time. For example, in the scene where Joseph Gorden-Levitt fights a subconscious projection of Fischer’s mind, the entire hotel hallway can rotate 360 degrees in real life, allowing the actors to run on the walls and ceiling, as well as float because the first dream caused them to lose gravity. As a small but important detail, the lights and sconces in the hotel hall are lit throughout the scene, which provides lighting but also helps make the shot look more realistic. During this scene, the hallway rotates around the camera as it rolls down a track parallel to the original floor. 

Every actor fits their roles perfectly, and the acting is extremely believable. For example, when Cobb’s wife dies, DiCaprio’s crying is so believable with voice cracks and facial expressions that it looks real. Also, when the new architect (Elliot Page) sees how she can change different aspects of a dream, she displays a believable sense of wonder and curiosity. In the hallway scene when Gordon-Levitt must use cables to appear like he is in zero-g with the spinning room, he lands perfectly on the hallway, hitting all his marks. 

The special effects in this movie are wonderful, especially in the scene when Ariadne (Page) plays with the shape of a dream and pulls the buildings of an entire city up above her and Cobb. Also, when a few of the main characters are stuck in limbo, the scene in which older buildings fall into sand and dust looks very realistic. In the end, when Cobb’s token, the top, doesn’t stop spinning it is a very important part of the story that shows whether or not he’s in a dream, and even though it is a smaller detail and much easier to animate, it’s an essential part of the story and the plot might be much more confusing without it. 

Overall, this movie is worth watching. The director, crew, and everyone involved clearly worked on each detail extensively and creatively. This movie is something you will want to talk about with your friends.