Inception: Dream A Little…More Mundane

Alright, I’m hopping on the Inception bandwagon after seeing the film this weekend but at least I know it’s more than just a bandwagon and more like the we’re-right-and-you’re-an-idiot-if-you-don’t-like-this-movie-wagon. It reminded me of a good book, where all the different angles worked seamlessly together so you were engrossed in the storytelling on all levels. I’m super conscious of the writing, description styles, setting and dialogue in a book: if one aspect is off, then the whole book falls apart for me. On the other hand, if these all come together, I can turn pages without realizing that I’m actually reading something: instead, the story plays out in my head as if I’ve been completely absorbed into it.

The same works for this movie: script, plot, acting, dialogue, set, costumes and special effects. Also, anyone who thinks Avatar is a better movie gets punched in the nuts.

I always enjoy daydreaming about movies, imagining how characters and story lines would adapt if I had been there. Would I be as cool, calm and collected as the characters? How would I react in the same setting? What if Leonardo DiCaprio was hired to visit me in my dreams? Would the result be just as mind-blowing and fantastic?

That’s what I realized that my version of Inception would be the complete opposite. My dreams are pretty lame, whether they consist of either me being back in high school and panicking over getting to the right class in time, being back in college and panicking over moving out of the dorm rooms in time, or being in a mall and panicking that I can’t find a bathroom. I’m not even kidding.

Can you imagine a thriller movie based on one of these?

FADE IN:

EXT – OUTDOOR LOCATION

COBB and ARIADNE are sitting outside a cafe in Paris. Two half empty cups of cafe au lait sit on the wicker table between them.

COBB

We create the world of a dream. We bring a subject into that dream and they fill it with their secrets.

ARIADNE

Then you break in and steal it?

COBB

Well, it’s not strictly speaking legal.

We see the shocked but intrigued look on Ariadne’s face as we fade out.

FORGHORN NOISE

FADE IN:

INT – WAREHOUSE LOCATION

COBB, EAMES, and ARIADNE are hooking themselves up to the elaborate PASIV Device that allows them to enter the dreams of their drugged subject, MOYE, who is snoring in a lounge chair between them.

ARTHUR enters.

ARTHUR

Why are we doing this? Why her?

The three glance up at him but never stop moving around the room.

COBB

Because I think I found a way home. And with this girl, that’s how I get there. Her husband is offering me everything so he can win this bet. All we have to do is make her eat a donut on her own accord before the year is over.

ARTHUR

You’re planting an idea into her head? You’re talking about inception. I hope you do understand the gravity of that request.

They settle into their chairs, ready to fall asleep.

COBB

The seed that we plant in this girl’s mind may change everything.

FOGHORN NOISE

EXT – LOS ANGELES PRIVATE SCHOOL LOCATION

COBB, ARIADNE and ARTHUR open their eyes and find themselves on the campus of a prestigious high school in Hancock Park. Girls in short khaki skirts and crisp white polo shirts lounge around with Kate Spade handbags and Dooney & Burke leather organizers. Somewhere, the bell rings.

COBB looks completely confused.

COBB

What the…what kind of dream is this? Are we in a high school?!

ARIADNE

You asked me to design a dream that our client would understand.

ARTHUR

She’s right. I discovered that despite being 28 years old, our target still suffers from anxiety stemming from six years of a single sex education among spoiled, upper-class Los Angeles girls. We figured that this setting would be most comfortable for Moye in her dream state…

COBB

Wait, seriously?

ARTHUR

Seriously.

COBB

Seriously?

ARTHUR

Seriously. Also, we’ll most likely find Moye running around butt naked, trying to find her class schedule. That’s…also something else she always dreams about.

COBB

Worst target ever.

FOGHORN NOISE