Very Pretty People Dreaming In Very Nice Suits

[redbrunja]

As soon as Inception was released, my flist was full of people squeeing about it. Then I had RL people tell me it was confusing. Then my flist continued to pound out fic, creating a fandom for a movie that was two weeks old.

I decided that regardless of whether it was as good as people said or completely over-rated, I had to see it for myself.

And quite frankly, it held up against all the hype.

Things I liked:

~I loved the recursive nature of the story telling.

~The whole movie felt both dream-like and lucid, which was quite impressive.

~I loved the bits of humor, the clothes, the complex web of relationships people had with each other, the suits.

~The scene were Cobb is talking to Moll about how he could only create a pale shade of his wife was both romance and gave great respect to the complexity of all people.

~The amazing special effects

~The 'worth a shot' kiss.

~The ambiguous ending that had me literally squirming in my seat.

Things I did not like as much:

~How much of a sausage-fest it was. There was only one girl and she was in a very traditionally female role.

I wonder if I'm going to remember my dreams tonight.

Comments

[okroginator.livejournal.com]

~How much of a sausage-fest it was. There was only one girl and she was in a very traditionally female role.

Well, two if you count Mal. But I agree; needed moar ladies. I loved the movie to death regardless, but after my second viewing, I determined that there definitely should have been another lady on the team.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

You're right, Moll (which was the name I heard) does make two. But she is also is a classically female role (the femme fatale) and one of my feminist red flags is when a group is all male or almost all male, and there really doesn't seem to be a good reason for it.

[misora.livejournal.com]

Originally Latin: malus, -a, -um = bad. :D

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Yep, it's French and Latin for bad.

[keirelle.livejournal.com]

I agree with the sausage-fest bit and wish there were more ladies (Nolan has a bad habit of lacking ladies). I actually really liked how Ariadne was presented. It was never pointed out that she was "a girl doing this job, woah", she was just the best, which I appreciated.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Agreed. And yeah, I definitely could tell that it was the same guy who had written Dark Knight, ladies wise.

I actually really liked how Ariadne was presented. It was never pointed out that she was "a girl doing this job, woah", she was just the best, which I appreciated.

This is very true.

[afigureofspeech.livejournal.com]

Inception kind of blew my mind in the theater, and then I came home and found a budding fandom that just kind of speed-exploded in front of my eyes. It was pretty cool actually. And I agree with all your points. :)

It would have been nice to have another female character who was actually real and not, you know, batshit crazy. But, I liked Ariadne hugely and, like keirelle said, how she was presented. And the whole cast is just so damn pretty lol

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I know! Even from the sidelines I've seen the fandom kind of explode, and it's really interesting to watch.

It would have been nice to have another female character who was actually real and not, you know, batshit crazy. But, I liked Ariadne hugely and, like keirelle said, how she was presented. And the whole cast is just so damn pretty lol

Word. And I actually really liked Moll! But still.

[mistaria.livejournal.com]

I definitely agree about it being a "sausage-fest." I thought Ellen Page did a good job but I would have rather seen her in a more action-y role I think. ;]

I actually didn't care for the ending but then I'm a pretty literal person so I don't always care for ambiguity. Plus I thought it was too easy... they panned the camera and I knew that was what was coming.

Also, it feeling lucid and dream-like at the same time was definitely awesome.

Now have some Inception memes (http://www.geekosystem.com/inception-memes/).

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I definitely agree about it being a "sausage-fest." I thought Ellen Page did a good job but I would have rather seen her in a more action-y role I think. ;]

Agreed. I look forward to seeing her in a role where she's not expected to be adorable, if that makes sense.

I actually didn't care for the ending but then I'm a pretty literal person so I don't always care for ambiguity. Plus I thought it was too easy... they panned the camera and I knew that was what was coming.

Valid point.

Also, it feeling lucid and dream-like at the same time was definitely awesome.

Personally, through the whole movie I kept thinking that his kids were going to turn out to not be real.

[blinding-light6.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was afraid it wasn't going to live up to the hype.

It was a visual treat. The ending got me thinking for a little while and at first I was dead set on all of it being a dream. Now, I'm not so sure...

I agree about the sausage-fest. Moll was more of the typical female role but, Marion Cotillard's performance was just wonderful. I don't know why but, Ellen Page's character didn't really pop on screen for me.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Me too!

Moll was more of the typical female role but, Marion Cotillard's performance was just wonderful.

She was amazing. I saw that actress in Public Enemies and she was exquisite there too.

[ivy-chan.livejournal.com]

Total agreement with the sausage-fest. I really adored Moll and Ariadne both, with one of my favorite scenes being the one where Ariadne's talking to her in Cobb's subconscious. I would have loved another lady on the team to balance all that testosterone out. I did like that Ariadne played whiz kid architect, since anything math/science/logic related isn't traditionally female. (And she's the BEST! Better than the main male lead!)

I was actually not fond of Cobb at all. I hated, really hated what he did to Moll- mind rape that led to her suicide. They even phrased it like a violation- he went to her 'secret place' and broke in. I didn't like how the film seemed to be telling me to feel sorry for him and his angst over it. To me, that was the major negative point of the film.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I really adored Moll and Ariadne both, with one of my favorite scenes being the one where Ariadne's talking to her in Cobb's subconscious.

Same here. Actually, when Moll killed Ariadne, I actually thought she was doing it to help Ariadne, so she wouldn't experience much pain, like she would if the other projections got her.

I hated, really hated what he did to Moll- mind rape that led to her suicide. They even phrased it like a violation- he went to her 'secret place' and broke in. I didn't like how the film seemed to be telling me to feel sorry for him and his angst over it. To me, that was the major negative point of the film.


I can't really argue with that. Did you feel similarly about them planting the idea in that business man's head? Because I found both of those actions deeply problematic, but I felt that the movie was presenting them as Not Nice Things To Do, and I didn't have the visceral reaction you did, so it didn't adversely effect my appreciation/enjoyment of the film.

[ivy-chan.livejournal.com]

I absolutely felt like what they did to the businessman whose name I forget was also extremely problematic, and for a while there, I really despised everyone on that team for taking part in it. (That was during the staged kidnapping part.)

I definitely felt like the movie was presenting them as Not Nice Things to Do, which was good, but there wasn't that feeling of 'awww, poor Cobb' about his admittedly shifty work. I felt like, after the admission of what he did with his wife, we're supposed to go: "Awww, Cobb, it's not your fault, you have to let go, it's just a mistake." When, to be honest, I was perfectly happy with him staying stuck in his subconscious with his dead wife.

Meanwhile, I didn't see that interpretation of Moll's killing Ariadne, but I like that idea very much. I wish that talk in the trashed apartment room had gone on for a bit longer, or that they'd thrown in another opportunity for Ariadne and Moll to have a chat. Part of this is because I LOVE MOLL'S ACTRESS, admittedly.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I absolutely felt like what they did to the businessman whose name I forget was also extremely problematic, and for a while there, I really despised everyone on that team for taking part in it. (That was during the staged kidnapping part.)

*nods* I had a really, really hard time with the lies the team was telling that business man and was really concerned that he was going to lose or damage his relationship with his godfather.

wish that talk in the trashed apartment room had gone on for a bit longer, or that they'd thrown in another opportunity for Ariadne and Moll to have a chat.

THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN AWESOME.

[devimelete.livejournal.com]

I recalled a post somewhere that despite the sausage-fest, it can be be looked as a feminist film because there is a strong critique of the trope of "yeah-guys-need-suppress-their-emotions" and the objectivity Cobb has on picturing his wife, trying to "correct" her while not realizing his own bullshit.

But yes. I really enjoyed it, even though it needs moar ladies. Like, if they can give the traditionally-male role of the "math/architect/science whiz" to a girl and doesn't make a peep about it, than they can give the muscle role to a lady as well and not say anything. Like that scene in the hotel where that guy-what's-his-name was fighting all of those dream-agents.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

the objectivity Cobb has on picturing his wife, trying to "correct" her while not realizing his own bullshit.

I don't know, the close pov the narrative has on Cobb makes it hard for me to buy that reading.

The one about it critiquing the idea that men should (or even can) just repress their emotions with no consequences feels much more valid to me.

they can give the muscle role to a lady as well and not say anything. Like that scene in the hotel where that guy-what's-his-name was fighting all of those dream-agents.

Agreed. Or not have EVERY business man be male.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Don't worry about it, that's happened to everyone.

I really enjoyed the film, how refreshingly original it was, and not yet another remake of a film.

This is very, very true. And I think I didn't emphasize in my review the sheer skill it takes to write a film about dreams that a.) feels dreamlike b.) isn't so closely tied to how one person dreams that it alienates sections of the audience and c.) is still understandable. I mean, Inception was impressively coherent.

In a mask of a human form she represented Cobb's guilt, the end result of his hubris. The subconscious of part of Cobb that prevented him from being an architect.

Hmm, interesting. While I know she was all a projection of Cobb's, she felt very... active to me, very much a character in her own right. I'll have to watch in again and see if my perception of her changes.

[littledust.livejournal.com]

I liked Inception, but I love the fandom. inception_kink is a fun place, and I haven't even really started filling prompts yet! I'm trying to finish a Mal fic first.

Totally agreed re: the lack of ladies. It's why Nolan will never be my favorite filmmaker, for all his technical prowess.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Totally agreed re: the lack of ladies. It's why Nolan will never be my favorite filmmaker, for all his technical prowess.

*nods*

[arefadedaway.livejournal.com]

Agreed re: the sausage-fest. I adored both Ariadne and Mal to death and loved the movie itself, but I'm extremely tired of how poorly Nolan treats women (if he includes them at all) in his movies. Ariadne was totally a step in the right direction (she is THE BEST out of EVERYONE in a typically male-dominated field and nobody even blinked an eye!). But, still. Sigh.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Ariadne was totally a step in the right direction (she is THE BEST out of EVERYONE in a typically male-dominated field and nobody even blinked an eye!)

The good news is that Nolan seems to be improving - hopefully a couple movies down the line and he'll be making epic movies about epic ladies.

[fairest1.livejournal.com]

Just got back from seeing it, and . . . it was decent. Not bad, but nothing I feel an urge to dive into fandom for. I called that he was in a dream from the start from the point we saw his wife's decision to wake up, and I figure that, somewhere, his wife is wide awake and wondering why he still hasn't followed.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

*nods*

Yeah, I'm looking forward to checking out some of the inception stuff I have in my memories, but I don't feel fannish about it either.

(Now, if someone wanted to start a kink meme regarding The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, I am SO there.)

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Anyway for being the only girl in the movie, Adriane held down the fort well.

True. And I really loved Mal/Moll, even if she was really only a projection.

The ambiguous ending screamed sequel to me because now I really want to know whether Dom really got out of the dream world or not.

Oh, I think Nolan is WAY too in love with that ambiguous ending to answer that question, even if he did do a sequel.