Inception

Having been impressed by Leonardo Dicaprio's recent oppurtunity to star, in the film 'Shutter Island', I avidly anticipated the arrival of this summer's 'Inception'.
     From the outset, Inception was obvioulsy going to be a success; it was directed and written by Christopher Nolan (of Batman fame), and the team of actors included Tom 'watch-this-space' Hardy, who was the well-casted lead in 2008's 'Bronson', will be playing Mad Max himself in 2012's Mad Max movie 'Mad Max: Fury Road', and was clearly enough to impress Guy Ritchie, when directing 'RocknRolla' in 2008. I suggest we all wait with baited breath to see what Hardy has in store for the future, and where his characters will apparently be from; a lifetime of moving countries has rendered him a diverse actor, through voice and clearly now through acting ability.
     Ellen Page, otherwise known as 'Juno', was honestly unexpected. I was admittedly wrong to assume that the lead in a that-film-gets-us teen film would be unwise, but there are scenes when her 'Inception' character, Ariadne, is upset in a way that is reminiscent of the drama of 'Juno',while not being enough to spoil the film you're watching, and also impressive scenes where she navigates the action genre in a way that I would love to see again.
     Also claiming a piece of the film's success was Cillian Murphy, or 'what have i seen that guy in?' as you may know him. Not only does Murphy have a face that i have very commonly heard mistaken for that of Christian Bale, but just to be more awkward, he also had a part in both Batman films in which Bale plays Bruce Wayne. Both of these films were also directed by Inception's Christopher Nolan; the Murphy-Nolan pairing makes for a lucritive summer of cinema, and even though that is not a phrase synonymous with a good film, they have set themselves a good reputation in these cases.
     It is worth mentioning that Michael Caine is also included in both 'Inception' and Nolan's Batman films, although he is included in a not-very-important way in both instances. Other than Alfred the butler being a classic and vital part of the Batman legacy, I can't see a point in Caine being in either film, and honestly that was a part that could have been taken by anyone. He was there in Inception to add a touch of cinema class, and I will credit the film that he certainly did, Michael Caine is cinema royalty, and as Nolan is obviously aware, any more inclusion would have been excessive and unnecessary. Playing a father-in-law and learned professor, Caine's occassional pearls of wisdom are an effective source of comfort in what has been extensively reported to be a confusing plotline. Helping Caine to increase the cast's average age was Pete Postlethwaite, who gave a fascinating performance as Murphy's dying father that haunts you after watching the film.
     On the release of 'Inception', there was a cry of mass confusion where the 'encore!' should have been, which I resent. The plotline is clearly complex, but surely that's the intention. There were some parts of the film where you don't have a clue what somebody has just said, or why they are doing what they are doing, but if I can ask one thing of you when you watch the film, it is that you have faith in the storytelling; if you feel like that when watching it, then not five minutes later, something will happen which will clear everything up.
     I will admit to being an advocate of hating happy endings. I can see why someone would include them in a film, but it is not hard for a film to refrain from being self-aware when including a happy ending, and it more often than not ends up making you feel uncomfortable. For this reason among others, I was left fulfilled by 'Inception'. The entire premise of the film is based upon the uncertainty of the reality they are experiencing within the film, and how fragile that reality is when it is in the hands of someone else, or fate itself. The fact that at the end of the whole film you are left unsure of whether or not what was being portrayed as reality for over two hours actually was reality was strangely satisfying. Of course it was frustrating, but that was massively overwhelmed by the disappointment I could hear from everyone around me, and thinking of how smug the creators of the film must be, knowing they are subjecting the public to that frustration on mass, as many times a day as they can, at most cinema screens in the country, every single day.