Warm Reception for Inception

Some people aren't really movie people, but I definitely am. I love the experience of going to movies. I've been known to go to the movies just to get into an air-conditioned theater, and I've also had some of my best naps in theaters. When my brother used to have to babysit me, we'd go to the movies and catch double features pretty regularly. It's kind of funny looking back on it now, because we'd often go and see different movies, so as an 8 year old, I'd be all by myself in the theater, and then wander out when I'm done, wondering where he was at. As a teen, Dave and I would go on movie marathons and pick out 4-5 movies we would watch in one day, hopping around in the theater, prepped with a backpack full of food, mostly junk food, that would leave us feeling pretty hashed by the end of the day.

I have a lot of fond memories of movies. I feel like I used to be a lot more easily satisfied by movies also. I often left the theater with that amazed, in awe, kind of feeling that I had just witnessed something truly special. I haven't felt like that for awhile now, however. Not to say that I haven't been entertained, or felt like I got my money's worth, but I haven't had that same blown away kind of feeling, that is, until last Friday.

Inception was the one movie that I had really been looking forward to among all of the summer releases. A-Team was really fun, Iron Man 2 was entertaining, and the remake of Karate Kid was better than I had expected, but I had July 16th marked in my movie calendar for quite some time now.

Christopher Nolan, writer, director, and producer of Inception is one person in Hollywood that I feel like I can set my clock by. With his reboot of the Batman franchise, particularly the Dark Knight, I just knew that he wouldn't fail. I loved what he did with The Prestige. The guy gets awesome performances from his characters, but probably more than anything, I just love his dark, screw with your mind kind of style. His stories are unpredictable, and he communicates a vision and message unlike anyone can. I love the way he creates these very fallible protagonists - you didn't really know who you were rooting for in The Prestige, and while Batman is the obvious choice for hero in those films, he's not one that is ever openly embraced in the movie itself. There are all kind of flaws that he injects into his characters, and it's really kind of awesome to see.

Some people don't like going to the theaters, dealing with fanatics, or the crowds, or the high price of movie tickets, but I think that's the best way to enjoy it. What's better than going to opening night for a movie that everyone has been eagerly waiting maybe months for? A movie I think would be mostly annoying, i.e. Eclipse, can turn into an event because of the gasps and gleeful cries of overflowing estrogen oozing from every person in attendance. Anticipation begets excitement which in turn begets a more involved, fun-filled experience.

Inception was no different. Seeing that movie opening night, no one really had any idea what to expect other than hopeful anticipation that they would be getting their money's worth. It's rare to sit for about two and a half hours and have no one moving or walking about in the aisles. Silent moments in the film were truly silent because every person is gripped by the drama of the moment, and you find yourself sitting on your seat's edge, wondering how the next scene will unfold. When the movie ended, with what I think was the perfect close, there was a collective and audible gasp as the entire theater exhaled at once.

Perfect. The whole thing was perfect. I haven't walked out of a movie feeling so satisfied and intent on paying full price to see it at least one or two more times on the big screen for about two years since his last movie.

It is so freakin' awesome. Go see it.