Inception, Toy Story 3

This entry’s poll:

Christopher Nolan is one of my least favorite modern filmmakers, as one could probably figure from my review of The Dark Knight, which I only now realize was a whiny rant by an immature me that seems to have taken one too many shots at the director just for the sake of doing so. I still agree with my original opinion of that movie, but I don’t think I was very nice about it. Then again, everyone who writes movie reviews is always looking for an opportunity to just tear the head off of someone because it’s simply more interesting than a tedious mediocre review. Everyone dreams of ending a review with a line about punching someone in the face. It just sounds awesome.

I think I’m only so vocal about my displeasure with Christopher Nolan because so many people are so adamantly vocal about how much they love him. It’s almost like it’s the common opinion to love his movies, which would make sense since so many of his recent films were very successful. I don’t dislike him just because “everyone else” loves him, as one may expect. Instead, I’m only very loud about my opinion because everyone else is.

After some thought I think I’ve honed in on why it is that he is such a popular director. It seems that each of his movies try something ambitious, which is certainly admirable, while simultaneously being geared towards as many viewers as possible. In doing so his movies will often have a clever premise or idea that I feel is either squandered by an attempt to facilitate viewing for a mainstream audience, or  just muddled into unrelenting despair by its own pretension. These movies were made for the mass populace, it’s evident from the barrage of action sequences for those with short attention spans, the pounding nth iteration of Hans Zimmer’s one and only musical score, and the big names to slap on the many, many movie posters. When this is coupled with his ambitious twist  or premise, people end up walking out of the film thinking that they saw a work of cinematic genius. Perhaps these people just don’t see enough of the hidden independent gems that actually provoke more thought than any of his films every year,and they just overestimate the only example they’ve seen in a 30-theater Cineplex of a filmmaker trying to be more creative than Michael Bay.

People tend to enjoy the simple mental game that each of Nolan’s screenplays elicit, rather than  notice the contrivances, holes, or silly devices used to set the rules. I mean, the resolution to The Prestige is perhaps the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen in a movie that took itself dead seriously, yet people everywhere hailed it as a pre-Unbreakable era Shyamalan masterstroke. Regardless of these problems, that movie would have still been bad because of its oppressively dark, sludgy atmosphere. This innate “darkness” is evident in each of his works (it’s even in the title of one…), and people seem to be drawn in by this as well. Maybe everyone only watches romantic comedies and Chrisopher Nolan movies, or maybe they’re just more masochistic than I am.

Okay, I’m ranting again, I can tell. Well, Nolan’s latest movie Inception seems to have public’s adoration just as much as The Dark Knight, but does he avoid the problems that caused me to despise his previous work?

- INCEPTION – (2010)

Dir: Christopher Nolan;  Star: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine.
Contracted dream explorers DiCaprio and Gordon Levitt have the technology to insert themselves into the dreaming minds of other people, where they interact with that person’s conscious self and their subconscious environment. They also possess the ability to alter or construct dream-scapes for their subjects, and to induce further dreams within those dreams to delve deeper into the subconscious, which they will need to do to tackle one last big assignment. Nolan’s clever idea allows for many layers of storytelling that fold into each other, while answering just enough questions to allow you to formulate your own acceptable, if slightly unsatisfactory, answers to the many holes the screenplay leaves. Towards the last third of the movie, its mental effectiveness is  bogged down by a plethora of unnecessary action sequences that would feel slightly insulting if it weren’t for some  commendable distractions. The film is aided by great use of special effects, that don’t rely on over-saturated CGI, which construct a dream world that is very similar to our own yet inherently odd, with some of the most contextually appropriate use of cross-cutting and slow-motion I’ve seen. It’s also very well cast, with a vibrant collection of talent that prevent the movie from getting lost in its own heavy-handedness. Although its premise is indeed compelling, in the end it doesn’t really provide any great insight into the human mind or the dreaming subconscious. Rather, it uses it as a playground for a heist-like action plot complete with gun-toting henchmen and motorcycles; this may be the most cerebral Hollywood action movie ever made. While its mental exercise isn’t exactly profound, and its many dream layers occasionally seem like an excuse for more simultaneous gunfights, Inception plays its cards well, going just deep enough to make it unusually compelling both visually and mentally for its duration. I suppose that’s more than I could have asked for.

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- TOY STORY 3 – (2010)

Dir: Lee Unkrich;  Star:Tom Hanks, Tim Allen
A decade after Toy Story 2, the same plot repeats itself in that the gang is separated from Andy and they want to go home, except home isn’t what it used to be since Andy is going to college. This time they’re stuck in a day care run by a crazy teddy bear. Pixar manages to get away with their lack of creative storyline with its cast of genuinely lovable characters, its enthusiasm, and its often very funny gags. A heartwarming throwback to the good old feelings and fun of the late 90′s, with the endearing bonds formed by these good plastic friends, and an optimistic outlook on the future.

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