Podcast
Podcast
Podcast
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Questions and Answers
Questions and Answers
What is the primary genre of Inception?
What is the primary genre of Inception?
- Science fiction
- Film noir
- Heist film (correct)
- Action
What camera system did Nolan and Pfister test for potential use in Inception?
What camera system did Nolan and Pfister test for potential use in Inception?
- IMAX
- VistaVision
- Super Dimension 70 (correct)
- Showscan
What was the most challenging visual effect in Inception?
What was the most challenging visual effect in Inception?
- The slow-motion sequences
- The 'Limbo' city level (correct)
- The foot chase in Tangier
- The multi-vehicle car chase
What song appears throughout the film?
What song appears throughout the film?
What was the budget for Inception?
What was the budget for Inception?
What was the primary marketing tool used for Inception?
What was the primary marketing tool used for Inception?
What is the name of the game launched on the film's official website?
What is the name of the game launched on the film's official website?
What is the significance of the spinning top at the end of the film?
What is the significance of the spinning top at the end of the film?
What award did Hans Zimmer's music for Inception receive a nomination for?
What award did Hans Zimmer's music for Inception receive a nomination for?
Questions and Answers
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Flashcards
Flashcards
What is 'dream stealing'?
What is 'dream stealing'?
Stealing information by infiltrating targets' subconscious.
What is 'Inception'?
What is 'Inception'?
Planting an idea into a target's subconscious.
What is dream-sharing technology?
What is dream-sharing technology?
Experimental technology to infiltrate targets' subconscious and extract information
What is 'Limbo' in Inception?
What is 'Limbo' in Inception?
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What describes Nolan's Visual Effects Approach?
What describes Nolan's Visual Effects Approach?
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What genres does Inception combine?
What genres does Inception combine?
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What is the ambiguity in the ending?
What is the ambiguity in the ending?
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What is the 'braam' sound?
What is the 'braam' sound?
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What does '-ception' indicate?
What does '-ception' indicate?
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Flashcards
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Study Notes
Study Notes
Inception: A 2010 film written and directed by Christopher Nolan, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as a professional thief, who steals information by infiltrating the subconscious of his targets. Cobb is offered the chance to have his criminal history erased as payment for the implantation of another person's idea into a target's subconscious. The ensemble cast includes Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Elliot Page, Tom Hardy, Dileep Rao, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, and Michael Caine. Nolan presented the idea of “dream stealers” to Warner Bros. in 2001, but decided to work on other films before making Inception. The film was shot in six countries and its budget was $160 million, split between Warner Bros. and Legendary. The film grossed over $828 million worldwide, becoming the fourth-highest-grossing film of 2010. Inception won four Academy Awards and was nominated for four more. The story follows Cobb and his team, who perform corporate espionage using experimental dream-sharing technology to infiltrate their targets' subconscious and extract information. They are hired to perform "inception" on Robert, the son of Saito's competitor Maurice Fischer, with the idea to dissolve his father's company. Saito promises to clear Cobb's criminal status, allowing him to return home to his children. The film's production included the construction of a hotel bar set which tilted 30 degrees, a hotel corridor that rotated a full 360 degrees to create the effect of alternate directions of gravity, and a corridor that spun like a giant hamster wheel. The foot chase in Tangier was shot in the streets and alleyways of the historic medina quarter, and a multi-vehicle car chase was staged on the streets of downtown Los Angeles, which involved a freight train crashing down the middle of a street. The idea of inception was inspired by the concept of shared dreaming, and Nolan spent nine to ten years working on the script. Nolan had been trying to work with Leonardo DiCaprio for years, and DiCaprio was finally intrigued by the concept of dream-heist. The film's climax takes place in "Limbo," a world of infinite subconscious, where Cobb and Ariadne have to rescue Robert and Saito. The film's final phase of principal photography took place in Alberta, where an elaborate set was assembled near the top station of the Canadian chairlift, taking three months to build. The ski-chase sequence was inspired by Nolan's favorite James Bond film, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.Inception: A Summary of Cinematography, Visual Effects, Music, Themes, Genre, Ending, and Marketing
Cinematography:
- Shot primarily on 35 mm film with key sequences filmed on 65 mm and aerial sequences in VistaVision.
- Nolan did not use IMAX cameras.
- Nolan and Pfister tested using Showscan and Super Dimension 70 as potential large-format, high-frame-rate camera systems to use for the film, but ultimately decided against either format.
- Sequences in slow motion were filmed on a Photo-Sonics 35 mm camera at speeds of up to 1,000 frames per second.
- Wally Pfister gave each location and dream level a distinctive look to aid the audience's recognition of the narrative's location.
Visual Effects:
- Nolan used little computer-generated imagery, preferring practical effects whenever possible.
- The most challenging effect was the "Limbo" city level at the end of the film.
- Inception had nearly 500 visual effects shots.
Music:
- The score for Inception was written by Hans Zimmer.
- Édith Piaf's "Non, je ne regrette rien" appears throughout the film.
- A soundtrack album was released on July 11, 2010, by Reprise Records.
- Hans Zimmer's music was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Original Score category in 2011.
Themes:
- Inception explores the idea of people sharing a dream space.
- The majority of the film's plot takes place in interconnected dream worlds.
- Others have argued that the film is itself a metaphor for filmmaking.
Genre:
- Nolan combined elements from several different film genres into the film, notably science fiction, heist film, and film noir.
Ending:
- The film cuts to the closing credits from a shot of the top apparently starting to show an ever so faint wobble, inviting speculation about whether the final sequence was reality or another dream.
- The ambiguity was deliberate.
Marketing:
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Warner Bros. spent US$100 million marketing the film.
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A viral marketing campaign was employed for the film.Inception: A Detailed Summary
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The film's official website initially only featured an animation of Cobb's spinning top. In December, the website launched an online game called Mind Crime, which revealed the film's poster upon completion.
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Warner Bros. gave away promotional T-shirts featuring the PASIV briefcase used to create the dream space at WonderCon in April 2010. Mind Crime received a stage 2 with more resources, including a hidden trailer for the movie.
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Inception and its film trailers are widely credited for launching the trend throughout the 2010s in which blockbuster movie trailers repeatedly hit audiences with so-called "braam" sounds.
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Inception was released on DVD and Blu-ray on December 3, 2010, and a limited Blu-ray edition packaged in a metal replica of the PASIV briefcase was also made available in the United States. The home video releases have sold over 9 million units and grossed over $160 million.
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Nolan expressed his intention to develop a video game set in the Inception world in November 2010.
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Inception was re-released in theaters for its tenth anniversary in August 2020, starting on August 12 in international markets and on August 21 in the U.S.
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Inception grossed US$292 million in the United States and Canada, US$56 million in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Malta and US$475 million in other countries for a total of US$823 million worldwide.
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On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 87% based on 361 reviews, with an average rating of 8.10/10. Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 74 out of 100 based on 42 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
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Inception appeared on over 273 critics' lists of the top ten films of 2010, being picked as number-one on at least 55 of those lists.
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In 2012, Total Film named Inception the most-rewatchable movie of all time.
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In 2019, Total Film named Inception the best film of the 2010s.
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Inception was included in the Visual Effects Society's list of "The Most Influential Visual Effects Films of All Time".
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Inception was ranked 84th on Hollywood's 100 Favorite Films, a list compiled by The Hollywood Reporter in 2014.Inception: Awards, Criticisms, and Pop Culture References
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The film was ranked number 14 on BBC's list of Top 100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century.
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The Daily Telegraph placed the title on its top ten list of the most overrated films, citing the film's failure to capture the essence of a dream.
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Inception won four Academy Awards in technical categories and three British Academy Film Awards in sound and visual effects categories.
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The film won two prestigious science fiction or fantasy film awards: the 2011 Bradbury Award and the 2011 Hugo Award.
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The film has been referenced in numerous pop and hip hop songs, including "Just Can't Get Enough" by Black Eyed Peas and "On the Floor" by Jennifer Lopez.
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The animated series South Park parodied the film in an episode titled "Insheeption."
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The film's title has been colloquialized as the suffix "-ception," indicating layering or recursion.
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Inception was an influence for Ariana Grande's music video for "No Tears Left to Cry."
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The television series The Flash said its season 4 finale was inspired by Inception.
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The film was parodied in an episode of The Simpsons titled "How I Wet Your Mother."
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Taylor Swift's 2020 single "The Man" features visuals resembling those from Inception.
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The film's director, Christopher Nolan, has cited the works of Stanley Kubrick and The Matrix as influences on the film.
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