This is a heist movie, paying homage to, amongst others, James Bond films, and that’s what important here – not mimicking actual dreams. Nolan creates a universe here with its own rules. The central motifs are strictly adhered to. For example the point about all dreams have no real beginning, you’re just suddenly in the midst of it. Nolan excellently uses this in the first half of the film. None of the scenes are established in the usual sense, we just float from one scene into the next. The mazes are another great example. Even in Mombasa the scene follows the dream structure. Cobb flees from henchmen that behave like dream projections through the labyrinthine city streets. And I just love the impossibly narrow alleyway that Cobb has to squeeze through! That’s the stuff that dreams are made of!

Another interesting thing about the movie is the design of the dream worlds. I have had discussions with viewers who object to how these worlds seem a little too normal, meaning that it’s not like anything can happen and anything is possible in these dreams. Well, I have to strongly insist that this is what makes them believable as dream worlds, at least for me. I can’t do anything I want to in my dreams. Everything is not possible. My dreams follow rules and logic very similar to the real world, with just that little weird twist here and there, like a staircase that never resolves its path. Its another sign of Nolan’s brilliance that his dream worlds are weird, but just barely different from reality.

If only all blockbuster summers had one of these…

I’ll just jump in and mention that I think the movie has a clear and defined antagonist. Mal. Both in the flashbacks to when she was alive, and when she is a projection of Dom’s subconscious later on, she incessantly wreaks havoc. She even talks and acts like a classic action movie villain, with the same wild mood swings that we’ve come to expect and love. For god’s sake, she even has a heavy continental accent! Hans Gruber i skirts!