Inception (2010)

Inception is a very complex film starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb, an "extractor". Dom enters the dreams of others and extracts information from them that those that he works for could not otherwise obtain.

Dom is unable to return to the U.S. or his children as he ran after being accused of killing his wife. His wife Mal (Marion Cotillard) often shows up in his dreams, and those of the people whose dreams that he is in, and tries to get him to stay. The only way that he can return home is to do a job for a man called Saito (Ken Watanabe)that would require him to enter the dreams of the son of one of Saito's rivals and instead of extracting information, plant it. The victim, Robert Fischer (Cillian Murphy) is the son of the Saito's newly deceased rival. Dom must implant the idea that Robert's father would want him to break apart his fathers company so that Saito would have the upper hand. In return, Saito would arrange for Dom to be able to return to the U.S. Does he accomplish is goal? I'll never tell!

I won't get into the how this feat is attempted, I will just say that it kept me interested. This is a complicated film that you must pay attention to understand. Don't nap, don't go to the bathroom, don't get that refill of super sized popcorn with extra fake butter. The photography is excellent and there is a fight scene that has Joseph Gordon-Levitt's character rolling around on the walls and ceilings. This film also includes Ellen Page as a "dream architect" and Michael Caine as Dom's father.

Overall I would say that this is a good movie, it made you concentrate. If you are looking for "summer fluff", this isn't it.

148 Minutes. Rated PG-13. I GIVE THIS MOVIE THREE AND THREE QUARTER STARS.

Salt (2010)

The film begins as Evelyn Salt (Jolie), a CIA agent, is being exchanged with another political prisoner. She is accompanied by her friend and colleague Ted Winter (Liev Schrieber). The reason that she ended up in prison is never explained.

Back at the office, Salt is brought in to interrogate a Russian spy named Orlov (Daniel Olbrycski) that wants to defect. While talking to him, he says that a Russian spy named Evelyn Salt is to assassinate the Russian president when he arrives to attend the funeral of the vice-president of the United States. Salt of course denies this and, worried about her husband, tries to call him without success. When She tries to leave, she is barred by her employer and escapes the facility as does Orlov. Now the CIA really believes that Salt is indeed a Russian sleeper spy. Salt runs home to find that her husband is missing and it looks like he was taken against his will and fast. Salt goes to New York City and infiltrates the Cathedral, shoots the Russian president, and gets away.

We see flashbacks to when she was a child in Russia and Orlov teaching the children to obey him and how to infiltrate the American government and respond on "Day X" when he would command them to do his bidding. After shooting the president, Salt goes to Orlov's boat where her husband is killed in front of her. She acts as though it doesn't matter as the marriage would have been part of her cover. Orlov, now convinced of her loyalty, tells Salt that the second part of Day X is to take the U.S. stock of Nuclear weapons. Salt then kills all aboard the ship and goes to meat up with a mole in the government that Orlov told her about.

The mole and Salt (in disguise as a man) get inside the White House. The mole sets off a bomb and the president is rushed to a bunker where he is convinced by Ted Winter that the Russians are preparing a nuclear strike. The President begins to transmit the codes into the computer right before Winter shoots everyone except the President who he knocks out cold. Winter explains to Salt that this was Orlov's plan all along and tries to start the sequence for launching missiles at the Middle East.

This movie wasn't bad. It definitely had a lot of action, albeit action that there is no way that a woman who weighs 95 pounds soaking wet could ever accomplish in real life. However, this is the movies and I have to keep that in mind. Her arms are so skinny it doesn't look like they could even hold up a gun. There are several twists which always keeps it interesting. they also left it wide open for a sequel... what a surprise! Overall I liked "Wanted" better although I hate a movie where Morgan Freeman plays a bad guy.

Rated PG-13. 99 Minutes. I GIVE THIS MOVIE THREE STARS OUT OF FIVE.