Review: Inception

"Inception" / Rated PG-13 / Warner Bros. / Dir. by Christopher Nolan / 148 min.

I hesitate to write this. I almost don't want to call it a review. I think I need to see "Inception" a few dozen more times before I'd feel adequate in describing it. Imagine if M.C. Escher was born 80 years later and chose film as his canvas. Then imagine if he made a "Bourne Identity" style action-thriller. That's "Inception".

Leonardo DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a dream extractor who is hired by companies to enter people's dreams to find and steal valuable secrets from their subconscious. He initially used his unique skill set for more noble purposes, but after an tragic event (which isn't revealed through the first half of the film), he has to stay on the run, making a living in the seamier underworld of dream-entering.

However, he's offered a proverbial "last big heist" which, if performed successfully, will clear his name. It's dangerous and he assembles a crack team to help him: Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is his point man, Ariadne (Ellen Page) is the architect who designs the dream world, Eames (Tom Hardy) is the "Forger" who assumes different identities within the dream and Siato (Ken Wantanabe) is the employer who insists on tagging along to make sure the task is completed. To reveal any of the plot beyond this would be patently criminal. The movie is as twisty and multi-layered as the dream states it strives to create and each plot point, even seemingly unimportant ones, ends up serving a greater purpose.

The true star, of course, is director/writer Christopher Nolan. Nolan is every bit the talent and genius that M. Night Shayamalan has convinced himself HE still is. He has created a story, a world, a cast of characters so multi-layered and complex that it simply cannot be fully appreciated in one viewing. The movie is almost 2 1/2 hours long, but I spent the bulk of that time leaning forward not wanting to miss a frame. Nolan, is a true original, much in the same way that Orson Wells and Alfred Hitchcock were. He dares to make big-budget, major-studio films that deal with ideas. Yes, "Inception" is a special-effects lollapalooza, but the visual tricks are there to serve the story. They exist to immerse you in the world, not to justify the world's existence.

I loved this movie. I felt the same way after seeing it that I did after seeing "The Dark Knight". I just knew that I saw something that was going to polarize some people, something that was going to spurn impassioned conversations among cinephiles for years to come. Something that, I believe, will emerge as being one of the great films of it's time. Right up to the last frame of the film, Nolan is daring you to interpret the movie, but he refuses to spoon feed you the answers, ultimately leaving you to decide what it was all about. How nice is it to have a director that not only trusts you to do your own thinking, but encourages you to think more deeply, all the while keeping you emotionally engaged and entertained. Nolan also directed "The Prestige", a film about the world of magicians. With "Inception", he proves himself to be, once again, one of the truly great magicians of cinema.

Grade: A

Review: The Sorcerer's Apprentice

"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" / Rated PG / Walt Disney / Dir. by Jon Turteltaub / 121 min.

"The Sorcerer's Apprentice", Disney's latest attempt to update anything from the studio's illustrious past for new audiences, is produced by Jerry Bruckheimer ("Pirates of the Caribbean"), directed by Jon Turteltaub (the "National Treasure" movies) and written by people responsible for "Prince of Persia" and "Bedtime Stories". Whatever movie you just envisioned from that list of credits is probably right on the money. "Apprentice" is not the brainiest of movies with characters that are decidedly two-dimensional, but the makers of the film obviously intended to make a light, breezy special-effect extravaganza that leaves the brain as quickly as it engages the senses and to that end, it's very successful.

A large part of your enjoyment of this movie will depend on your tolerance of "nerd du jour", Jay Baruchel (t.v.'s "Undeclared", "She's Out of My League", "How to Train Your Dragon"). Baruchel's humorous, but potentially annoying nasal whine is proudly on display throughout the film. Personally, I find his self-effacing mannerisms amusing. He plays Dave, a brilliant, socially-awkward physicist (think the lost cast-member of "Big Bang Theory"), who unwittingly discovers that particle physics comes so easily to him because he is the "Prime Merlinian", a powerful sorcerer destined to destroy the mythical Morgana Le Fay (Alice Krige). Guiding him in this quest is his master, Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage), one of Merlin's three apprentices. Another of the three, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina), has decided to align himself with Morgana and is dedicated to helping her destroy the world by raising the greatest evil sorcerer's in history from the dead.

Yes, the plot is just another restructuring of the Campbell-ian mythic hero archetype, but complaining about the plot is sort of like complaining because "National Treasure" isn't historically accurate. It's not the point. The point is the humor, the action and the F/X, all of which are strong....not exceptional, but still enjoyable.

Cage spends most of the movie doing his normal shtick and Baruchel is solidly playing himself, but the other actors seem to be having a lot of fun, especially Molina, who has now lifted two enjoyable, if unremarkable, summer films (this and "Prince of Persia") just by showing up and having a good time.

Turteltaub is a very solid director who is just artistic enough to avoid "point and shoot" laziness, but not creative enough to really stand out. He hasn't developed a visual style per se, but he definitely has a vibe that permeates his films. With few exceptions, his movies (the "National Tresure" films, "The Kid", "While You Were Sleeping", "Cool Runnings") have a buoyant giddiness that doesn't sharpen the mind, but you really don't care as long as you're smiling. This movie fits that mold very well.

All told, this isn't a classic, but it's a perfectly enjoyable time-killer.

Final Grade: B

Review: Despicable Me

Despicable Me / Rated PG / Universal / Dir. by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud / 95 min.

In the new 3D computer-animated comedy "Despicable Me", Steve Carrel provides the voice for Gru, an aging super-villain whose super-villainy seems pretty much tied to petty vandalism and the stealing of great national landmarks, like the jumbo-tron in Times Square and the replica of the Statue of Liberty in Las Vegas. Gru is supported by his own personal techno-wizard, Dr. Nefario (unrecognizably played by Russell Brand) and an army of minions, genial creatures who are shaped like yellow Chicklets and speak in an English/nonsense hybrid that, while jumbled, is always understood. Gru longs to prove his despicable nature by stealing the moon, however his plan is constantly thwarted by enemies grand (a young upstart super-villain named Vector, played by Jason Segal) and enemies ordinary (the bank won't give him the loan he needs to build his rocket). However, his ultimate undoing is the fact that he has a heart. A heart that is softened greatly when his plan requires the adopting of three adorable orphan girls.

If you've seen any of the advertisements for "Despicable Me", you've pretty much seen the first ten minutes of the film, however, you haven't seen the best bits. This is a fast-paced, brightly-colored comedy that leaves you smiling the entire running time. While the voice work across the board is excellent, the characters that steal the show are those darn minions (Mostly voiced by director Pierre Coffin, with one, Jerry, played by Jemaine Clement of "Flight of the Conchord" fame). The minions are the most inventive and giggle-inducing creations I've seen in a very long time. Their moments alone are worth the price of admission.

However, the element that was not advertised (in one of the most aggressive advertising campaigns of the last year)was how much heart this movie has. It's like a combination of Pixar and Looney Tunes and that's every bit a compliment. Granted, the jokes are the main reason for watching, but the story of a villain becoming a hero due to the love of three orphan girls is heart-warming and genuine. Especially when we see the lack of love Gru had as a child. His mother, a sharply-critical nag played by Julie Andrews, was mockingly cruel when he expressed a desire to become an astronaut, a desire that gradually warped into the desire to steal the moon. A sort of "if I can't have it, no one can" type of thing.

Now, if I may digress for a moment, "Despicable Me" got me thinking about something. This has, by most accounts, been a largely disappointing summer movie season. There have been a number of entertaining films, a disproportionately large number of awful films and just one unanimously embraced film, "Toy Story 3". "Despicable Me" is now my second favorite movie so far this summer (behind "TS3") and, before those two, the strongest entertainment of the year had been "How to Train Your Dragon". At first, I could chalk that up to the fact that I'm an animation nut, a truth to which I freely admit. However, I think there's more to it. For me, the perfect film is one in which you feel thoroughly entertained, but you also feel equally edified, either intellectually or emotionally. It seems that, thanks to the reputation of Pixar, many of the most creative storytellers are now working in animation. It invites the best of all worlds: the visual showmanship of the best action movies, the demented wit of the best Monty Python sketches, the heart of the most sincere dramas. It takes time when done right. I just wish that the makers of live-action popcorn movies would take the same time and the same pride that these filmmakers do. If they had, this summer's movie season could've been one for the record books.

As it stands, "Despicable Me" is one of the few bright spots of the summer. Not an animated classic, but a vibrant, funny and heartfelt cartoon that will please many a crowd in the remaining weeks of summer. If you're looking for a fun way to get out of the heat, you could do way worse than this one.

Grade: A-

Alas...I slacketh (mini-review catch-up)

So, yes, there have been many movies to cover since my last review and while I am replete with legitimate reasons, I shall avoid going into them right now. Suffice to say, here are some catch-up reviews and I'll try to get back on track with the full, long-winded reviews next week.

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse / Rated PG-13 / Dir. by David Slade / 124 min.

The good news: Eclipse is the best of the Twilight movies. The bad news: It's a Twilight movie. Now, I totally get the appeal. These stories are geared to inflame the emotionally-charged hormonally-laden and have, obviously, succeeded as a transparent meditation on teenage sexuality. The only problem is...well...nothing ever happens. There's no character arc and the characters mumble the same sentiments over and over for two hours until a brief action climax arrives to satisfy those in the audience who are asleep. Granted, it's difficult to construct a narrative when your central protagonist is Taylor Lautner's abs, but still. However, "Eclipse" almost succeeds as a movie. For the first time in the entire film series, I laughed at something the filmmakers intended to be funny. For the first time I actually cared what happened to the characters. Not that it's a classic. Still, very little actually happens as far as moving these characters forward and the dialog is often laughable, but it's better. This is a good thing. I have always felt that Hollywood sells the female teenager short. This movie starts to finally feel like it's talking to them, not talking down to them. If the first two felt like an after-school special with vampires, this is starting to feel like a John Hughes drama with vampires and that's progress.

Grade: B-

The Last Airbender / Rated PG / Dir. by M. Night Shyamalan / 103 min.

I used to be a Shyamalan apologist. I used to expound the virtues of eternally trashed films like "Lady in the Water" and "The Village". I still believe that "Signs" is one of the most beautifully orchestrated bits of biblical parable disguised as sci-fi ever made. However, that all ended with "The Happening". The more than convoluted plot, the fact that he wrung career-worst performances out of two of the most likable actors in Hollywood, the death scenes that were supposed to be horrific, but just got more and more comical as the plot unraveled.....it was just the straw that broke the camel's back. Unfortunately, "The Last Airbender" does nothing to help his eviscerated reputation. The biggest enemy of Shyamalan the director is Shyamalan the writer. He's caught "Lucas-itis", the belief that no matter what bubbles out of your word-processor, it's brilliant and shall in no way be subjected to outside opinion or re-writes. Therefore, the movie is visually gorgeous and dramatically worse than bad. With the exception of Noah Ringer as the titular Airbender, the acting is really awful and the dialog wouldn't have been accepted in a high-school screenwriting class. Please....please let Shyamalan direct someone else's screenplay next time.

Grade: A for the visuals, D- for the rest.

Grown-Ups / Rated PG-13 / Dir. by Dennis Dugan / 102 min.

This is the easiest review of them all. It's an Adam Sandler movie and you know what that means. That's not to say it's a film starring Adam Sandler, that's a different beast entirely. Those include "Spanglish", "Funny People" and "Punch-Drunk Love". No, this is a board-certified "Adam Sandler Movie". You know, like "The Waterboy", "Big Daddy", and "The Wedding Singer". If you enjoyed those movies, you'll probably enjoy this one. That's all you need to know.

Grade: B-

Knight and Day / Rated PG-13 / Dir. by James Mangold / 109 min.

Why all the hate? Why did this movie flop? I really don't get it. Cruise hasn't been this likable in a movie in a long time and Diaz reminds us why she was a star to begin with. It's fast paced, funny, genuinely romantic, it should have been a home run hit. I have the same feelings about "A-Team". Both of these movies had everything you look for in a summer movie. Why they both struggle to make half their production budget while "Eclipse" breaks records is a bafflement. I know this doesn't tell you much about the movie, but if you're looking for a fun date movie, give it a try before it leaves theaters.

Grade: B+

Jonah Hex / Rated PG-13 / Dir. by Jimmy Hayward / 81 min.

However thought the director of "Horton Hears a Who" would be the perfect fit for a gritty Western revenge drama was nuts. However, Hayward does the best he can with a screenplay that makes little if any sense. The sole reason to see this movie is Josh Brolin in the title role. Brolin has shown many times over that he elevates any movie he's in just by showing up and "Jonah Hex" is no exception. He's terrific in it. My feelings after seeing this movie were similar to my feelings after "Sherlock Holmes". I liked the lead, I liked the world that was created, I just didn't like this particular story. While I can look forward to a "Sherlock Holmes" sequel to see those characters in a different story, I don't think the same will happen for "Hex". Brolin will have to keep looking for his big-budget breakout roll. For now, skip this and go watch Brolin in "The Goonies" for the tenth time.

Grade: D+