Christopher Nolan's Inception

[chamber-music]

Ditto with the Squirrel.

And so far, Nolan seems to have the "Spielberg/Scorsese course" Awesome movies, no Director oscars (till late in their carrers).

Nolans still only 40 years old which is still kind of young for a director so perhaps they are waiting until later in is career.

 

[vanson]

but you have to have in mind that the nominations are voted from the specific branches.. like actors vote actors - directors vote directors etc.

so they are hundreds of people who send their ballot in. its not like a few people get together at an evening and decide who gets a nod and who doesnt..

even more so now when everybody is allowed to vote for anyone.
how many members are they now ? 5000 ? 6000 ?

if someone gets the majority of that many voters he deserves it imo.

 

[A Necessary Evil]

After seeing inception again, I've decided hands down my favorite thing of the movie.

The thing I love the most about Inception, is not so much wether the totem will stop spinning or not, but the fact that Cobb doesn't look back on it. He doesn't care any more, he has found his solace. To me, it is a much more poignat way to bring resolution to a character than a gimmicky trick to have people talking about wether it was all real or not.

 

[dark_b]

After seeing inception again, I've decided hands down my favorite thing of the movie.

The thing I love the most about Inception, is not so much wether the totem will stop spinning or not, but the fact that Cobb doesn't look back on it. He doesn't care any more, he has found his solace. To me, it is a much more poignat way to bring resolution to a character than a gimmicky trick to have people talking about wether it was all real or not.

it was the important part of that scene.

but WB and Nolan decided to focus on the totem . its in a way a smart way to get people back in the tehater to see the totem again.

 

[redfirebird2008]

After seeing inception again, I've decided hands down my favorite thing of the movie.

The thing I love the most about Inception, is not so much wether the totem will stop spinning or not, but the fact that Cobb doesn't look back on it. He doesn't care any more, he has found his solace. To me, it is a much more poignat way to bring resolution to a character than a gimmicky trick to have people talking about wether it was all real or not.

That's exactly what Nolan has said all along. It really doesn't matter whether it's real or a dream. The point of that little scene is simply to show that Cobb is at peace no matter the outcome.

 

[dark_b]

That's exactly what Nolan has said all along. It really doesn't matter whether it's real or a dream. The point of that little scene is simply to show that Cobb is at peace no matter the outcome.

yet he focused on the totem

 

[redfirebird2008]

yet he focused on the totem

I took it as a wink at the audience in good humor. I laughed at it the first time I saw it. So did a lot of the people around me in the theater.

 

[A Necessary Evil]

That's exactly what Nolan has said all along. It really doesn't matter whether it's real or a dream. The point of that little scene is simply to show that Cobb is at peace no matter the outcome.

Aah. Well, awesome then.

 

[batman11]

^^ Yes, he focused on the totem, because that's what the audience usually focuses on. Ever see The Prestige?

"Now you're looking for the secret... but you won't find it, because of course you're not really looking. You don't really want to know. You want to be fooled."

The audience looks for the twist or the secret, because on the surface, that seems to excite or enthral us. By keeping the focus on the totem, one is able to "weed out" those who can't look past their perception of the film's ending and focus on the character and how he feels.

As mentioned, the point of the ending is that Cobb is finally in a place where he can accept any reality. What I really admire, though, is that the ending also poses the question, can we accept any reality, even one in which the protagonist is dreaming? Are we able to look past our personal beliefs/desires (ex: how can I be happy when I know that there remains the possibility that it is all a dream?) and side with the protagonist who we've just journeyed and connected with for the past 2.5 hours, or do we obsess about an answer (one that is not definitive, mind you) to a question that Cobb himself doesn't even care to answer? If we choose the latter, Cobb's initial obsession becomes our obsession, and by the end of the film, we are more trapped than he is. This type of connection with the audience, and discerning how a viewer relates to the character, is not possible without focusing on the totem.

Of course, spending a little time on the totem, I also like the argument that Cobb doesn't accept any reality, but rather becomes completely aware of the difference between reality and dreams. He spins the totem when he comes home strictly out of habit, but walks away from it because he is so sure of his surroundings. Cobb, after the whole inception ordeal, is confident in his reality, and believes that he returned home to his real children. When he hears there names being called, he snaps out of his habit of slaving over the totem, and instead chooses to rely on his thoughts and his feelings - he believes the world and his children to be real. This aligns with the interesting idea of trusting what we feel and see vs. what we see. Does not Cobb not need the totem anymore because, now over Mal, he is so confident in his perception of reality, or is it because (as discussed in my above interpretation) he has come to accept that one can find happiness, solace and catharsis, even in a dream? If one were to choose the latter option, what does that say about Cobb and his children? If part of him believes that it doesn't matter whether or not he is in a dream, then what of his children in the real world? How does he cope with that slim possibility of leaving his kids behind? Of course, I'm sure had the film not cut to black, Cobb would have turned around eventually...unless of course he just picked up his kids and kept on walking towards the sunset... Anyhow, I think both sides, and the entire argument, are all quite compelling, especially when dealing with such a flawed character. Does he have the right to give in and be a little selfish? Should we reward that? Is he too confident in his skills of perception? Etc. etc. etc. t:

So, that's just my (loooong) take, and that's why I love it. I like asking people who've seen the movie what they felt the most important part was of the ending/their take on the totem, simply because I'm interested in hearing how many people answer "he walked away without looking." It's always fun to hear the different ways it resonated with viewers, and what they took away from it.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

I took it as a wink at the audience in good humor. I laughed at it the first time I saw it. So did a lot of the people around me in the theater.

I laugh at it every time I see it, simply because its such a brilliant ending. I know we are meant to feel happy for Cobb in this scene, but I would be much happier for him knowing for a fact it was all in the real world.

 

[rashad]

SBFF: Christopher Nolan Receives Modern Master Award

Leonardo DiCaprio handed out the Modern Master award at the Santa Barbara Film Fest. Modern and Master are two great titles for this great director. The sound is a little low, I know. After the cut, Nolan on Batman and Superman. Just to say, the only filmmaker to be nominated for all of the major guilds except the SAG- PGA, DGA, WGA was not, for the third time, nominated for Best Director. Sort of hoping he continues this streak so that he can join the ranks of the greatest directors who were never nominated, nor never won, Oscars.
http://www.awardsdaily.com/2011/01/sbff-christopher-nolan-receives-modern-master-award/

[YT]T5oz3ukD2Rs[/YT]

 

[Heisenberg]

I met Chris Nolan at the DGA awards & told him how much Inception blew me away. He should've gotten an Oscar nom but there's never justice

Twitter Page

Smart man

 

[Tacit Ronin]

"I loved Avatar too", was probably Nolan's reply.

 

[Fenrir]

"I loved Avatar too", was probably Nolan's reply.

If he did, I wouldn't doubt his sincerity. Nolan confessed that he loved Michael Bay's films, after all.

 

[Tacit Ronin]

If he did, I wouldn't doubt his sincerity. Nolan confessed that he loved Michael Bay's films, after all.

I don't remember the action scenes in Bay's film being shot so perfectly.

 

[redfirebird2008]

"I loved Avatar too", was probably Nolan's reply.

Someone in the press asked him what he thought of it last year and he said he did enjoy it a lot. I'm guessing he also enjoyed the Terminator films judging by how much he loves Blade Runner.

 

[Anita18]

Random Inception sighting: Was watching US Figure Skating Nationals this weekend and they played Inception trailer music over the opening of the ladies competition:



And Anderson Cooper namedropped Inception while discussing the mental state of Jared Lee Loughner, the Tucson shooter who gravely injured the Congresswoman. Apparently Loughner was SUPER into lucid dreaming, to the point where his friends believed he had lost grip on what was reality and what was a dream.

I'm actually mildly surprised that they're still blaming the old standby, violent video games, for the shooting, rather than Inception.

 

[Tacit Ronin]

Well the Sarah Palin crosshair thing was a bit like a videogame no? Or am I mistaken?

 

[Ipodman]

If he did, I wouldn't doubt his sincerity. Nolan confessed that he loved Michael Bay's films, after all.

Orly, where?

 

[redfirebird2008]

Orly, where?

If I remember right, Nolan himself didn't say anything. His cinematographer Wally Pfister spilled the beans. He said he gives Nolan a lot of crap about loving Bay's movies.

 

[DarKJediKnight]

http://www.slashfilm.com/christopher-nolan-loves-watching-michael-bay-movies/

 

[Tacit Ronin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo-P0OypM8c&feature=player_embedded

Do those kids even know who Malick, Scott and Kubrick are? And wow I didn't know Nolan's father passed away after Inception was done.

 

[Anita18]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo-P0OypM8c&feature=player_embedded

Do those kids even know who Malick, Scott and Kubrick are? And wow I didn't know Nolan's father passed away after Inception was done.

Awww, that adorably awkward. Nolan was so sweet to those young kids.

 

[vanson]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo-P0OypM8c&feature=player_embedded

Do those kids even know who Malick, Scott and Kubrick are? And wow I didn't know Nolan's father passed away after Inception was done.

now thats a cool idea for asking questions to mr. nolan

 

[kvz5]

Top 40 earners in Hollywood for 2010:

4. Christopher Nolan – $71.5 million
$69 million: Inception (back-end for writing, producing, and directing, based on worldwide gross of $823 million, and share of DVD and pay-TV revenue)
$2.5 million: Older film revenue

5. Leonardo DiCaprio – $62 million
$59 million: Inception (back-end for starring in somewhat convoluted Christopher Nolan film)
$3 million: Back-end for starring in somewhat convoluted Martin Scorsese film Shutter Island, older film revenue

The full list here:

http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/features/2011/03/hollywood-top-earners-201103?currentPage=all