Review: Inception

A story arc like a Möbius strip, twisting in on itself but always keeping the narrative line intact. Visual effects like optical illusions, demanding a second and third look as your brain considers their construction. Continuity of characters and events in imperfect symmetry like the Penrose Stairs - the inspiration for M.C. Escher's enigmatic Ascending and Descending print - fascinating the audience but never befuddling them. Inception is brain training for moviegoers, and writer/director Christopher Nolan will stretch all your synapses before you walk away from the cinema spaced out on serotonin.

Such an intricate picture puzzle should not be spoilt by a lazy review, so the following plot points are entry level only (and if you really want to start at the very beginning, check out 'The Cobol Job' - an online graphic novel prequel that's an excellent scene-setter).

An honourable thief, Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is at the cutting edge of corporate espionage. Ably assisted by his partner in crime Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the duo extract private information during their marks' dreams to sell to wealthy clients - a sort of brain burglary, somehow made possible by wires poking out of a suitcase. But Cobb has a hidden secret of his own; his dead wife Mal (Marion Cotillard) has become a ghost in the machine, making awkward appearances at critical junctures in his work. In an attempt to bring balance back to his own life, Cobb accepts a job that requires a dangerous change of tactic - from extraction to inception. In the style of Neo crossed with Danny Ocean, he assembles a team to fill the roles of Architect, Forger and Chemist - a dreamweaving student called Ariadne (Ellen Page); Eames (Tom Hardy), an Englishman adept at blending in effortlessly; and a sedation specialist called Yusuf (Dileep Rao). In addition, Cobb's client Saito (Ken Watanabe) chooses to come along for the ride as a Tourist to ensure he gets what he's paying for. He wants to place the germ of an idea in the mind of a business rival (Cillian Murphy). If Cobb succeeds, the idea will grow into a decision that brings down an empire. If he fails, he risks waking up in a real-life nightmare...

It's hard to believe anyone will fall asleep during Inception. Not because the movie is noisy (in fact, Hans Zimmer's synth score makes use of subtlety as much as the sub-woofer), but because viewers will want to think deeply about what they see on screen. This is not a headache inducer like Primer or Stay that you happily go along with at first, only to find the film suddenly races away and leaves you lost. In all his films, Christopher Nolan has gently probed the mind - playing with time in Memento and playing tricks in The Prestige, studying sleep and sin in Insomnia and studying psychosis in The Dark Knight. This latest effort is a true original amid another summer season full of remakes, eight years in the imagination for two-and-a-half hours of entertainment. None of that time is wasted.

All the elements interlock in Inception. There's energy in the cast and the script; DiCaprio's determination drives the story forward, Matrix-style moments allow coolheaded Gordon-Levitt to levitate, and the supporting players offer more than just the defined duties of their characters. The movie poster depicts a Dark City but cinematographer Wally Pfister shoots bright cityscapes, beaches and snowy peaks as well as underground labyrinths. The special effects and post-production work - spinning corridors, skewed streets, gravity-defying drops etc - never even jut out as stand-alone set pieces, so expertly are they blended into the action.

The phrase 'it was only a dream' has long represented the ultimate cop-out in storytelling but in the case of Inception, it's the way in to a rabbit hole of staggering imagination that rivals anything invented by Kubrick, Lynch, Kelly or Gondry. Nolan elicits a revelatory sensation like the first time you ever focused in properly on a Magic Eye picture. However, this film is no fad; you'll be excited at the prospect of repeat viewings. In fact, you may even develop a recurring dream based on the adventures of Cobb and co, as Inception's message is too powerful and compelling to be forgotten quickly.

Memorable Line: Eames (producing grenade gun that dwarfs Arthur's AK47): You mustn't be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling. (fires round, huge explosion)

I Know That Face: Nash, the original Architect, is played by Lukas Haas who, 25 years ago, got his big break playing Amish boy Samuel Happ in Witness.

Location, Location, Location: The final snowbound scenes were filmed in Kananaskis Country near Calgary, Canada.