READ IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHEDINCEPTION YET
Before you watch Inception, make sure you read this to get familiar with the terms that will be constantly coined during the film. Also, it is a high concept movie that requires a lot of attention and understanding prior to watching it.
01)Incept means birth or born. In the movie, inception is a process of inducing a new idea which is planted into someone's mind through a shared-dream and subconscious state. Inception is not impossible but it is difficult. Inception requires a lot of imagination. Inception is contrary to the norm by using shared dream state to steal information!
02) During shared-dream state, a group of people is hooked up to a machine inside a briefcase that injects a special chemical formulation that induces high sedatives to allow sedation and shared-dream. The team usually comprised of an extractor, an architect or anyone else who may be related to the mission. The name of that machine is PASIV Device.
03)The Extractor is the person who responsible in pulling out information (or in this particular mission; introduce a new idea). Leonardo DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a highly skilled extractor who failed his mission while trying to pull out secrets from Saito. However he redeem his reputation later by agreeing on a job which is thought impossible.
04)The Architect is the person who is responsible in recreating the dream world inside the mind of the Dreamer(s). An architect provides the basic layouts in general like a town, roads, cars or light streets - a background of the dream that will be later filled by the Dreamers with his or her subconscious. An architect also can create a setting based on his/her imagination or past experience (although it is discouraged to use the latter to recreate as one may find it hard to define between dream and reality). Ellen Page plays Ariadne and she prepares the design which will be very much the same as a maze puzzle. However, each architecture level should only be known by the specific dreamer so that no one else can bring their own projections (aside the Dreamer's) into the dream state.
05)The Dreamer is the person whose dream provides the the setting of the crime. In the movie, dreams within a dream is possible. When a few levels of dream are involved, each level will usually have a different dreamer. The term 'dreamer' also includes anyone who shares the dream-state too.
06)The Chemist is the person who provides the perfect compound of chemical to induce sedation. There are different type of chemical to induce such depending on the level of dreams. Dileep Rao plays Yusuf, the chemist from Mombasa whom provides the team a special formula that induce deep dream-state.
07)The Subject is the person who is subconsciously brought into the dream usually for the purpose of extracting information. In the movie, Cillian Murphy plays Fischer Jr, the subject in which a new idea will be planted into him.
08)A Kick is a mechanism where the equilibrium of the dream state is disrupted by bringing any one in the dream state into awake and return them to the reality. A kick can be in any form as long as one awake from their dream. In most cases, a kick is synchronize to allow everyone wakes up. A kick is different then shooting yourself in the head, while a good kick will allow you to feel like falling off the bed during the dream to awake you up in the previous level. Timing of a kick is crucial if multiple level of dreams is employed. One must be 'kicked' from the deeper stage one by one before one can back into the reality.
09)Totem is any object that is light but contains mass and composition that only the owner knew, usually specific and constructed by someone who plans to invade a dream. The object is useful to determine whether one is in the real world or still in a dream stage.
10)Projection is anyone created by the subconscious mind of the Subject. Projections are not real and are described to function like white blood cells that will function if the subject realizes that the dream he's in isn't his. Projections respond violently and attempt to seek out the Dreamer and destroy hum, while also acts to protect the Subject's dream from been invaded.
11)Paradox is a term in which one Dreamer can manipulate the exact setting. Even the architect designs the specific layout, there are some circumstances where the Dreamer can alter it.
12)Limbo is a place where dreamers may end up if they go too deeply. It’s a place where time runs quickly and people seem to forget reality. it is believed that one that flung in this level will burn out of their mind and became entrapped in. A limbo does not have a dreamer and it is a place of shared consciousness.
A Guide to Viewing 'Inception' for the Second Time
*Watch the wedding band. Much has been made since the film's release about whether Cobb has his wedding band on in every scene. If you can pull yourself away from the action and complication, watch for it. (Hint: it isn't on in every scene. Deciphering why it's on in some scenes and not others might be helpful.)
*Pay attention to the children. Cobb's children appear throughout the film. Do they always look the same, appear the same age, and are they dressed the same? They are supposed to be with their grandmother, and we assume that's Mal's mother, since she has a French accent. (Hint: in most scenes, they have on exactly the same clothing, with only a couple of exceptions.)
*Enjoy the chase scene in Mombasa, one of the best chase scenes in recent cinematic memory. Are there elements of it that appear to be a dream?
*Decipher the train riddle. "You're waiting for a train, a train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you don't know for sure. Because you'll be together."
*Watch for trains throughout the film. What do they represent?
*Pay attention to the water imagery throughout the film, walls of water, rain, water bursting through, bathtubs filled with water. In the opening scene, Cobb is washed up on a beach. How or why is that important?
*Study the scene where Michael Caine's character first appears, and pay very close attention to the dialogue. Then give equal attention to the final exchanges of dialogue between Marion Cotillard and Leonardo Di Caprio.
*What is the significance of architects, and architecture?
*Try to see what's on the "confidential" document Dom pulls from Saito's safe early in the film, what's on the flight ticket he's offered twice, and what's in Fischer's passport. If you can, look for Fischer's birthdate. (Spoiler: It's 17 Sep 1973) What's the significance of the man who keeps handing him an airline ticket and telling him he must "go now."
*Ask yourself the significance of the numbers: 528 491. Other than being a six-digit prime number, does it have any significance?
*Pay attention to the names: Fischer, Arthur, Eames, Browning, Mal (pronounced "Moll" as in "Molly"), Ariadne, Miles. What is the significance of Mr. Charles? What is the importance of their various roles? (The Tourist, The Point Man, The Architect, The Forger, The Extractor, The Mark)
*Pay attention to the totems, and their names: top, die, bishop. Why is it that Cobb can use Mal's totem if one isn't supposed to be able to do that?
*Take time to enjoy the Hans Zimmer soundtrack, which was apparently created without seeing the film.
*Enjoy the Edith Piaf song used as a countdown throughout, and ask yourself the significance of the title. Appreciate the nod to Marion Cotillard's turn in "La Vie en Rose."
**A direct translation of the lyrics for the song "Non, je ne regrette rien" as performed by Edith Piaf is: "I regret nothing/no, I have no regrets/I regret neither the good things that were done to me nor the bad things/They are all the same to me/...The past is payed, swept away, forgotten/I don't care of the past anymore/I set my memories on fire/My agonies, and my pleasures/I don't need them any more/Swept away in the agonies of love/Swept away forever, I'm restarting with nothing..." Nolan has made a point of saying that he chose the song specifically for the movie, which is heavily concerned with the effect of memories on the psyche, and specifically the disastrous effect that not letting go of memories of love-gone-wrong can have on the subconscious--exactly what the song discusses. Also of note: in the original French, "I regret neither the good things I've done nor the bad things" is "Ni le bien qu'on m'a fait ni le mal," and since Cobb's wife is named Mal, that gives the line a double meaning.
*Watch the top. Cobb spins it several times throughout the film. How often does it fall? What significance does it have with Mal's secret which has been deeply buried?
*Cobb tells Ariadne there's only one thing she needs to know about him. What is that? He admits to doing something with his memories throughout the process. How does that correlate to the concept of inception, the father-son relationship, and the rescue? What is resolved by film's end?
*Ask yourself the significance of the rescue of Saito from limbo, and ponder what happens with Cobb's gun.
*Pay attention to the use of cold in the third level of the dream. How would that correspond to reality, and why is everyone dressed in white?
*Take time to enjoy the location shots. The "alps" scenes were filmed at Fortress Mountain Resort in Alberta, Canada, and the "Mombasa" scenes were actually shot in Tangiers.
*Ponder the significance of Mal's apparent suicide, and why she would need to be rescued from limbo.
*Watch for the gauzy curtains. What do they mean? Why do they appear more at the end of the film, and what is the light coming through them? What significance do they have if any to the appearance of the children, which increases at the end?
*Pay special attention to the difference in the passage of time in the film. Notice especially when a watch face is ticking.
*Ask yourself the significance of Saito's call and Cobb's passage through immigration. He doesn't speak to any of the other main characters after he wakes up on the plane. Why is that?
*Some have suggested it's significant to look at Cobb's passport stamp as he passes through immigration (I'm unconvinced). Do pay attention to whether or not he is wearing his wedding ring in this scene.
*Is Michael Caine wearing the same clothing he had on in the earlier scene in Paris?
*Enjoy the CGI and special effects, especially the rotating hallway reminiscent of Fred Astaire's classic scene in "Royal Wedding."
*Take time to enjoy the laughs in the film, including the "worth a shot" kiss, "It seemed neater," and Eames' idea of dreaming bigger. Have a good laugh at Saito on the green shag carpet noting it's polyester instead of wool. Is the carpeting always there in that scene? And where is this apartment located?
*Look for possible real-life mirrors to any of the events or people in the dreams.
*Consider that the actual length of time covered in the film was either very short or very long. Which is more logical?
*Pick a theory of the plot and stick with it throughout your second viewing of the film. Does it hold?
*Finally, appreciate the script and the fact that the screenplay took ten years for Christopher Nolan to write.
After viewing the movie, ask yourself the following questions:
*Is it logical that Michael Caine's character would be in Paris?
*Is it logical that when the van is tumbling, affecting the gravity in scenes below it, there is no corresponding gravity disturbance in the airplane above it?
*Is it believable that the architect Cobb hires in Paris would coincidentally be named Ariadne?
*Is it logical that Cobb's children called him in Tokyo? Are their voices consistent throughout that call?
*If they are using a powerful sedative, does it make sense that any of them would drink alcohol beforehand? How are they administering sedative inside the dreams?
*How did they know that Fischer would order water?
*How do they get back and forth from various locations around the globe? Eames claims to be in Sydney studying Browning and his relationship with Fischer, at the same time they're all in a workshop where exactly? Paris? How are they getting back and forth?
*Is it logical that rooms 528 and 491 would be stacked on top of each other in a hotel?
*Is it logical that Fischer could be revived with a defibrillator after waiting that long?
*Is it logical in the dream scene in Saito's love nest apartment that the mob outside would be in Mombasa?
*Is it logical that Fischer never recognizes Saito, if he's one of their company's chief competitors?
*Is it logical that non-dreamers see what's in the dreams above and below them when they've already been kicked or didn't enter? Yusif laughs as he's driving the van. How does he see what's in the dream below?