The irony of this film is that many who see it won’t realize that one of the themes is how easy it is to manipulate what we think and feel by governments, businesses, advertising, religions and so on. The technology used in the film to take it all to a much higher level doesn’t exist yet, and may never exist as portrayed, but that doesn’t mean other means won’t be just as effective in trying to control us.

I’m not going to talk about the plot: the less you know going in the better. Be aware that the trailers only hint at the depth of this film. And that’s one potential problem for the filmmakers. This is a film for intelligent people with multiple levels of things going on, often at the same time. While there are plenty of explosions, gun battles and car chases for those less inclined to brain usage, even they serve the story in ways you aren’t used to. And what a story. Reality is what you make it. Literally.

If all you want is a popcorn film that requires little more than turning off your brain, go watch crap like Sux and the City or Transformers XII or whatever other remake or marginal TV show is playing this week. But if you want something that will stretch your mind and is truly original that haven’t seen before, Inception is the film for you.

It’s hard to imagine that writer/director Christopher Nolan (Momento, The Dark Knight) won’t win the Oscar for best screenplay because it’s hard to imagine there being a more original idea and execution of one this year. I don’t praise films often, but this time, Uncle Dave says go see it!