Baffled by the enticingly cryptic trailer, Inception instantly hit me as a 'must see at the cinema' film, to be viewed on the biggest screen possible. In an uncanny a stroke of luck, ODEON Liverpool One has just launched its brand spanking new IMAX screen which boasts to be the world's 'most immersive movie experience'.
Perhaps a combination of IMAX excitement along with a genuinely intriguing plot made me expectant of something really special. Thankfully, I was right, the film did not disappoint and, it has to be said, the IMAX screen is very big. As an IMAX virgin I was blown away, but am reliably informed that other IMAX screens are nearly twice the size. So, IMAX devotees beware.
Inception sees Christopher Nolan (Memento, The Dark Night) given free rein to explore the complexities of the mind, more specifically, of dreams and the vulnerability snoozing might leave us open to.
And so the science fantasy unfolds, with special effects nothing short of spectacular. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Dom Cobb, in a world where dreams are hijacked and a maze of dreams for the sleeping mind can be purpose built, Cobb is the world's most skilled thought thief. Simply put, it's a heist movie. A heist designed in intricate detail to take place inside the subconscious of a man who must have no idea he has left reality.
From the off it's clear Cobb's personality is complex, and his talent unique. An international fugitive, he leaps at the risky job offer by a Japanese businessman in order to return home. To succeed Cobb must accomplish a mind trick widely believed to be impossible - Inception.
Mind burglar Cobb can steal but can he implant thoughts so deep into a mind that the subject believes he has awoken with an idea entirely his own?
Unable to pull off the job alone, Cobb enlists a team of varied expertise to help him. An architect (Ellen Page) to build three detailed dreams into which they will sedate their subject Robert Fischer Jnr (Cillan Murphy). Heir to a multi-billion dollar corporation, Cobb has been instructed to invade Fischer's mind in order to implant a decision to dissolve his father's business empire.
Nolan draws the audience in deep as tension builds, inviting us to poke around inside Cobb's subconscious as he struggles to cope with his past. Will Cobb take control of his personal demons before his memories set out to destroy him and the task at hand? The stakes are high, for this is a dream from which you cannot simply wake up. Die in this dream state and your unconscious self will fall into limbo for countless decades.
How quickly can the line between dreams and reality blur? And how many of us, given the chance, would choose a perfect world if reality was too painful a nightmare?
It would be easy to poke fun at such a highly convoluted storyline, and many critics have, but I beg you to suspend your disbelief and enjoy the two and a half hour ride.
Forget Avatar, this is the most visually impressive, genuinely edge-of-your-seat dramatic film I've seen so far this year.
9/10 Think The Matrix meets Ocean's Eleven meets Red Dwarf episode Back To Reality.
Now showing at cinemas nationwide. You can see Inception digitally re-mastered into the unparalleled image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience® at ODEON Liverpool ONE.
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